Urban Stream and Wetland Restoration in the Global South—A DPSIR Analysis

Karl M. Wantzen, Carlos Bernardo Mascarenhas Alves, Sidia Diaouma Badiane, Raita Bala, Martín Blettler, Marcos Callisto, Yixin Cao, Melanie Kolb, G. Mathias Kondolf, Marina Fernandes Leite, Diego Rodrigues Macedo, Obaidullah Mahdi, Moana Neves, M. Elfritzson Peralta, Vincent Rotgé, Guillermo Rueda-Delgado, Andres Scharager, Anna Serra-Llobet, Jean-Louis Yengué and Aude Zingraff-Hamed
Additional contact information
Karl M. Wantzen: CNRS UMR 7324 CITERES, University of Tours, 37200 Tours, France
Carlos Bernardo Mascarenhas Alves: Nuvelhas, Projeto Manuelzão - Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av Antonio Carlos, 6627, Pampulha, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais CEP 30.270-901, Brazil
Sidia Diaouma Badiane: Laboratory of Biogeography, University Cheikh Anta Diop of Dakar, Dakar BP 5005, Senegal
Raita Bala: Departement d’Aménagement et Environnement, International Master in Urban Planning and Sustainability, PolyTech Tours, 37200 Tours, France
Martín Blettler: National Institute of Limnology (INALI; CONICET-UNL), Ciudad Universitaria, 3000 Santa Fe, Argentina
Marcos Callisto: Laboratório de Ecologia de Bentos, Departamento de Biologia Geral Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Avenida Antônio Carlos 6627, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270, Brazil
Yixin Cao: CNRS UMR 7324 CITERES, University of Tours, 37200 Tours, France
Melanie Kolb: Institute of Geography, National Autonomous University of Mexico, 04510 Mexico City, Mexico
G. Mathias Kondolf: Institute of International Studies, University of California, Berkeley, 215 Moses Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720–2308, USA
Marina Fernandes Leite: Ponte Ambiental Consultoria e Soluções Ambientais, R. João Moura, 661—Pinheiros, São Paulo 05412-001, Brazil
Diego Rodrigues Macedo: Departamento de Geografia, Instituto de Geociências, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av Antonio Carlos, 6627, Pampula, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais CEP 30.270-901, Brazil
Obaidullah Mahdi: Departement d’Aménagement et Environnement, International Master in Urban Planning and Sustainability, PolyTech Tours, 37200 Tours, France
Moana Neves: Nuvelhas, Projeto Manuelzão - Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av Antonio Carlos, 6627, Pampulha, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais CEP 30.270-901, Brazil
M. Elfritzson Peralta: Research Center for the Natural and Applied Sciences, The Graduate School, and Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science, University of Santo Tomas, España Boulevard, Manila 1015, Philippines
Vincent Rotgé: CNRS UMR 7324 CITERES, University of Tours, 37200 Tours, France
Guillermo Rueda-Delgado: NGO Ecoyaco, Bogotá 110571, Colombia
Andres Scharager: Faculdad de Sciencias Sociales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, C1053ABJ Buenos Aires, Argentina
Anna Serra-Llobet: Institute of International Studies, University of California, Berkeley, 215 Moses Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720–2308, USA
Jean-Louis Yengué: Research Team 2252 RURALITÉS, University of Poitiers, 86000 Poitiers, France
Aude Zingraff-Hamed: CNRS UMR 7324 CITERES, University of Tours, 37200 Tours, France

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 18, 1-48

Abstract: In many countries of the Global South, aquatic ecosystems such as streams, rivers, lakes, and wetlands are severely impacted by several simultaneous environmental stressors, associated with accelerated urban development, and extreme climate. However, this problem receives little attention. Applying a DPSIR approach (Drivers, Pressures, State, Impacts, Responses), we analyzed the environmental impacts and their effects on urban hydrosystems (including stagnant waters), and suggest possible solutions from a series of case studies worldwide. We find that rivers in the Global South, with their distinctive geographical and socio-political setting, display significant differences from the Urban Stream Syndrome described so far in temperate zones. We introduce the term of ‘Southern Urban Hydrosystem Syndrome’ for the biophysical problems as well as the social interactions, including the perception of water bodies by the urbanites, the interactions of actors (e.g., top-down, bottom-up), and the motivations that drive urban hydrosystem restoration projects of the Global South. Supported by a synthesis of case studies (with a focus on Brazilian restoration projects), this paper summarizes the state of the art, highlights the currently existing lacunae for research, and delivers examples of practical solutions that may inform UNESCO’s North–South–South dialogue to solve these urgent problems. Two elements appear to be specifically important for the success of restoration projects in the Global South, namely the broad acceptance and commitment of local populations beyond merely ‘ecological’ justifications, e.g., healthy living environments and ecosystems with cultural linkages (‘River Culture’). To make it possible implementable/practical solutions must be extended to (often poor) people having settled along river banks and wetlands.

Keywords: rivers; lakes and wetlands; socio-ecosystem; environmental impacts; restoration; urban sprawl; Southern Urban Hydrosystem Syndrome; River Culture; social connectivity; ecosystem services (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/18/4975/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/18/4975/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2019:i:18:p:4975-:d:266392

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().