The research presented in this thesis has highlighted (bio)geochemical, hydrological, and wetland ecological processes that interact and enhance ecosystem development on wetlands built on fine sediment. A combination of greenhouse and laboratory experiments were conducted. Some measured data from these experiments formed important input for subsequent analysis in a modeling environment. The findings presented in Chapters 2-6 can be divided into four topics: 1) Plant–soil interactions in the terrestrial zone, 2) wetland–terrestrial processes influencing nutrient availability in the land–water zone, 3) effects of plants on sediment consolidation in the terrestrial zone, and 4) effects of bioturbation on nutrient availability in the aquatic zone. The next sections give a summary of the results for these four topics. The last section summarizes the recommendations formulated for the Marker Wadden project.
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Since the early work on defining and analyzing resilience in domains such as engineering, ecology and psychology, the concept has gained significant traction in many fields of research and practice. It has also become a very powerful justification for various policy goals in the water sector, evident in terms like flood resilience, river resilience, and water resilience. At the same time, a substantial body of literature has developed that questions the resilience concept's systems ontology, natural science roots and alleged conservatism, and criticizes resilience thinking for not addressing power issues. In this study, we review these critiques with the aim to develop a framework for power-sensitive resilience analysis. We build on the three faces of power to conceptualize the power to define resilience. We structure our discussion of the relevant literature into five questions that need to be reflected upon when applying the resilience concept to social–hydrological systems. These questions address: (a) resilience of what, (b) resilience at what scale, (c) resilience to what, (d) resilience for what purpose, and (e) resilience for whom; and the implications of the political choices involved in defining these parameters for resilience building or analysis. Explicitly considering these questions enables making political choices explicit in order to support negotiation or contestation on how resilience is defined and used.
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Infiltrating pavements are potentially effective climate adaptation measures to counteract arising challenges related to flooding and drought in urban areas. However, they are susceptible to clogging causing premature degradation. As part of the Dutch Delta Plan, Dutch municipalities were encouraged to put infiltrating pavements into practice. Disappointing experiences made a significant number of municipalities decide, however, to stop further implementation. A need existed to better understand how infiltrating pavements function in practice. Through 81 full-scale infiltration tests, we investigated the performance of infiltrating pavements in practice. Most pavements function well above Dutch and international standards. However, variation was found to be high. Infiltration rates decrease over time. Age alone, however, is not a sufficient explanatory factor. Other factors, such as environmental or system characteristics, are of influence here. Maintenance can play a major role in preserving/improving the performance of infiltrating pavements in practice. While our results provide the first indication of the functioning of infiltrating pavement in practice, only with multi-year measurements following a strict monitoring protocol can the longer-term effects of environmental factors and maintenance actually be determined, providing the basis for the development of an optimal maintenance schedule and associated cost–benefit assessments to the added value of this type of climate adaptation.
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Innovations are required in urban infrastructures due to the pressing needs for mitigating climate change and prevent resource depletion. In order to address the slow pace of innovation in urban systems, this paper analyses factors involved in attempts to introduce novel sanitary systems. Today new requirements are important: sanitary systems should have an optimal energy/climate performance, with recovery of resources, and with fewer emissions. Anaerobic digestion has been suggested as an alternative to current aerobic waste water treatment processes. This paper presents an overview of attempts to introduce novel anaerobic sanitation systems for domestic sanitation. The paper identifies main factors that contributed to a premature termination of such attempts. Especially smaller scale anaerobic sanitation systems will probably not be able to compete economically with traditional sewage treatment. However, anaerobic treatment has various advantages for mitigating climate change, removing persistent chemicals, and for the transition to a circular economy. The paper concludes that loss avoidance, both in the sewage system and in the waste water treatment plants, should play a key role in determining experiments that could lead to a transition in sanitation. http://dx.doi.org/10.13044/j.sdewes.d6.0214 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karel-mulder-163aa96/
MULTIFILE
Peatlands can be found in almost every country in the world, but we areonly just starting to realise their value and how to harness their potential asa powerhouse nature-based solution. The more we learn about peatlands,the more we value the important services they provide - controllingfloods, purifying and supplying water, safeguarding species,harbouring deep cultural meaning, inspiring creativity and offeringlivelihoods to millions of people. We cannot afford to lose them or abusethem. A lack of understanding of peatlands’ vital role in the landscape, combined with outdated policies and perverse incentives, means that peatlands continue to be drained and damaged around the world. Peatlands are our largest terrestrial organic carbon stock, and if we are to meet ourglobal goals and commitments, we must work hard to understand,protect, restore, and sustainably manage these vital ecosystems. This Peatlands Across Europe: Innovation & Inspiration Guide is a valuable step towards that reality – it captures important recommendations, shares the cutting edge experiences of peatland restoration pioneers, and identifies gaps, priorities and lessons from across Europe that can be taken up by peatland practitioners around the globe.
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Op 6 november 2015 hield Ruth Benschop haar lectorale rede. Ze richt daarin haar blik op de praktijk van artistiek In haar gedachte-experiment voert ze ons langs een bonte stoet: een achttiende-eeuwse eland, de schrijvende antropoloog, zwijgende werknemers in een lift, en slurpende tafelgenoten. Wat gebeurt er als we eikenhouten clichés over kunst en wetenschap, autonomie en openbaarheid, subjectiviteit en objectiviteit even terzijde leggen?
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For environmental governance to be more effective and transformative, it needs to enhance the presence of experimental and innovative approaches for participation. This enhancement requires a transformation of environmental governance, as too often the (public) participation process is set up as a formal obligation in the development of a proposed intervention. This article, in search of alternatives, and in support of this transformation elaborates on spaces where participatory and deliberative governance processes have been deployed. Experiences with two mediated participation methodologies – community art and visual problem appraisal – allow a demonstration of their potential, relevance and attractiveness. Additionally, the article analyzes the challenges that result from the nature of these arts-based methodologies, from the confrontational aspects of voices overlooked in conventional approaches, and from the need to rethink professionals’ competences. Considering current environmental urgencies, mediated participation and social imaginaries still demonstrate capacities to open new avenues for action and reflection.
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At the age of a failing economic system and undeniable evidence of the effects humankind has had over the planet, it is necessary to look for alternatives to the way we live locally. This article explores the use of designing narratives and metanarratives to co-create imaginaries serving as the needed alternatives. This research starts by considering the historical factors to understand how industrialisation and the loss of traditional practices created a culture of disconnection from Nature in the Girona area, but also looks at why people start now reconnecting with it. The analysis is the foundation for speculative design practices to co-create a new local narrative of connection and regeneration. The project adopted the Integrative Worldviews Framework and used paradoxes to create possible future worldviews based on historical factors and literature. Citizens participated in conversational future-visioning workshops to develop and evaluate their local imagery of the previously created worldviews. This conversation-based exercise evidenced the potential of paradoxes in destructive futures to create imaginaries of regeneration. These imaginaries merge and form future stories. From the future narratives, the practice created cultural artefacts embodying a new culture of connection based on storytelling, traditional jobs, and a mythological understanding of Nature. Finally, as observed at the end of the project, these artefacts allow citizens to adopt them as their culture and expand their current worldview.
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In order to receive a licence to produce, poultry farmers have to take into account societal demands, among others: animal welfare, healthy working conditions for the workers and landscape quality. A way to reach a combination of these goals is to create a design for the poultry house and outdoor run. We propose a methodology based on five steps, which enables us to create a design thattakes into consideration societal demands and that can be tested on its effects. These five steps are: 1. Giving a theoretical background on the societal demands (hen ethology, farm management and landscape quality) and based on this; 2. Giving a set of design criteria. 3. Describing the current state of the farm, in order to know its current qualities, 4. Making a design of the farm using the sets of criteria as guiding principle. 5. Reflecting on the design, to show whether the different criteria can be combined and where compromises are needed. A case study on an organic farm in the centre of the Netherlands showed that hen welfare, farm management and landscape quality can be improved together, although some measures do not add to all design criteria. Especially the effect on landscape quality and farm management is variable: the latter is also depending on the personal motivation of the farmer.
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Manure application can spread antimicrobial resistance (AMR) from manure to soil and surface water. This study evaluated the role of the soil texture on the dynamics of antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) in soils and surrounding surface waters. Six dairy farms with distinct soil textures (clay, sand, and peat) were sampled at different time points after the application of manure, and three representative ARGs sul1, erm(B), and tet(W) were quantified with qPCR. Manuring initially increased levels of erm(B) by 1.5 ± 0.5 log copies/kg of soil and tet(W) by 0.8 ± 0.4 log copies/kg across soil textures, after which levels gradually declined. In surface waters from clay environments, regardless of the ARG, the gene levels initially increased by 2.6 ± 1.6 log copies/L, after which levels gradually declined. The gene decay in soils was strongly dependent on the type of ARG (erm(B) < tet(W) < sul1; half-lives of 7, 11, and 75 days, respectively), while in water, the decay was primarily dependent on the soil texture adjacent to the sampled surface water (clay < peat < sand; half-lives of 2, 6, and 10 days, respectively). Finally, recovery of ARG levels was predicted after 29–42 days. The results thus showed that there was not a complete restoration of ARGs in soils between rounds of manure application. In conclusion, this study demonstrates that rather than showing similar dynamics of decay, factors such as the type of ARG and soil texture drive the ARG persistence in the environment.
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