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Groundwater Dependent Wetlands

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The Wetland Book

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Abstract

Groundwater-dependent wetlands (GDW) are no different to other wetlands in their need for management particularly under circumstances where hydrological changes threaten the conservation of wetland values. However, GDW have two important characteristics that make their management challenging. They derive a significant proportion of their annual inflow from hydrological pathways obscured by subterranean geology and geomorphology, and therefore understanding their response to altered groundwater regimes can be perceptually difficult. This same context creates a spatial and temporal “disconnect,” where delays and thresholds need to be understood before cause and effect can be established. Accordingly GDW are best approached from a starting point of complexity and uncertainty using management frameworks appropriate for the task.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Ecosystem Management, Edith Cowan University, 270 Joondalup Drive, 6050, Perth, WA, Australia

    Ray Froend

  2. School of Natural Sciences, Edith Cowan University, 270 Joondalup Drive, 6027, Joondalup, WA, Australia

    Pierre Horwitz

Authors
  1. Ray Froend
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  2. Pierre Horwitz
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Ray Froend or Pierre Horwitz .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. of Ecology and Biodiversity, Charles Sturt University Inst. for Land, Water and Society, Albury, New South Wales, Australia

    C. Max Finlayson

  2. Great Somerford, Wiltshire, United Kingdom

    Mark Everard

  3. Chair of Aquatic Ecosystems, UNESCO-IHE Chair of Aquatic Ecosystems, Delft, The Netherlands

    Kenneth Irvine

  4. RM Wetland & Environment Ltd. , Littleworth, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom

    Robert J. McInnes

  5. USGS National Wetlands Research Center , Lafayette, Louisiana, USA

    Beth A. Middleton

  6. Dept. of Water Science and Engineering, UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education Dept. of Water Science and Engineering, Delft, Zuid-Holland, The Netherlands

    Anne A. van Dam

  7. Charles Sturt University , Albury, New South Wales, Australia

    Nick C. Davidson

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© 2016 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

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Froend, R., Horwitz, P. (2016). Groundwater Dependent Wetlands. In: Finlayson, C., et al. The Wetland Book. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6172-8_225-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6172-8_225-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-007-6172-8

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Biomedicine and Life SciencesReference Module Biomedical and Life Sciences

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