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Long-Term Changes in the Ecological Conditions of the Iskar River (Danube River Basin, Bulgaria)

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Human Impact on Danube Watershed Biodiversity in the XXI Century

Part of the book series: Geobotany Studies ((GEOBOT))

Abstract

The Iskar River, a Danube tributary, is the longest Bulgarian inland river, flowing through seven geographical areas of Bulgaria. It crosses one of the most urbanised and densely populated areas in Bulgaria—the city of Sofia and its surroundings; and it plays a major role in water supply for drinking, household and industry, discharge of sewage, irrigation, and power generation in the area. Therefore, the Iskar River has been subjected to growing pressure from human activities for long periods of time. This chapter presents a review of the available information about human activities in the Iskar River basin, Bulgaria, and their impact on the hydrological and ecological conditions of the river. The data presented and the case study illustrates the long-term changes in the ecological status based on benthic macroinvertebrates and fish. The results of this and similar studies may contribute to the implementation of the Management Plan for the Danube River Basin in Bulgaria, as well as for the River Basin Management Plan.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to express their gratitude to their colleagues (in alphabetical order): Dimitar Parvanov, Markéta Ondračková, Martina Dávidová, Milena Nikolova, Radim Blažek, Tihomir Stefanov and Stefan Kazakov for their help in the field and laboratory work, and to Eng. Ivan Botev for preparation of the schematic map of the Iskar River basin. The study was funded by the Bulgarian Science Fund, Ministry of Education, Youth and Science, within the Project DO-283/2008, and by the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area (2009–2014), Programme BG03 Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, Project ESENIAS-TOOLS, D-33-51/30.06.2015.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biological Faculty, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”, Sofia, Bulgaria

    Lyubomir Kenderov

  2. Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria

    Teodora Trichkova

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  1. Lyubomir Kenderov
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  2. Teodora Trichkova
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Sibiu, Romania

    Doru Bănăduc

  2. Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Sibiu, Romania

    Angela Curtean-Bănăduc

  3. Department of Botany and Ecology, University of Camerino, Camerino, Italy

    Franco Pedrotti

  4. University of Western Brittany, Brittany, France

    Kevin Cianfaglione

  5. Fundaţia ADEPT, Salisbury, UK

    John R. Akeroyd

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Kenderov, L., Trichkova, T. (2020). Long-Term Changes in the Ecological Conditions of the Iskar River (Danube River Basin, Bulgaria). In: Bănăduc, D., Curtean-Bănăduc, A., Pedrotti, F., Cianfaglione, K., Akeroyd, J. (eds) Human Impact on Danube Watershed Biodiversity in the XXI Century. Geobotany Studies. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-37242-2_19

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