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3.2 Hydromorphological pressures

For decades, humans have altered the shape of water bodies and the flow of river courses to farm the land, facilitate navigation, construct hydropower plants and protect settlements and agricultural land against flooding. For these purposes, rivers have been straightened, channelised and disconnected from their floodplains; land has been reclaimed, dams and weirs have been built, embankments have been reinforced, and groundwater levels have changed. These activities have resulted in altered habitats, changed flows, interruptions in river continuity, loss of floodplain connectivity and severe impacts on the status of the aquatic environment. These changes have caused damage to the morphology and hydrology of the water bodies, i.e. to their hydromorphology (EEA, 2018; EEA, 2019).

Hydromorphology plays a key role for aquatic ecosystems. For example, water flow and substrate provide physical habitat for plants and animals, such as fish and benthic invertebrates. Good hydromorphological functioning is an essential element of ecosystem health and underpins the delivery of many ecosystem services and benefits for society (EPA Catchments Unit, 2016; Houlden, 2018).[1] 

[1] https://www.catchments.ie/hydromorphology-what-is-it/ and http://www.hrwallingford.com/news/Hydromorphology-the_forgotten_facet_of_the_WFD