Chapter 22 - Environmental Water and Integrated Catchment Management

Abstract

Failure to address nonflow stressors and flow-mediated connections through catchments is frequently implicated as the cause of disappointing outcomes from experimental environmental water projects. This is a key reason for considering environmental water management as part of an integrated catchment management (ICM) approach, which aligns efforts across government and nongovernment stakeholders to balance protection and use of land, water, and biodiversity. Successful ICM requires an ability to determine the primary stressors affecting environmental function within a catchment. Systematic review of evidence is a practical approach to identification of stressors in river ecosystems and several approaches are available. Implementation of ICM has had mixed results. In Australia, the Victorian catchment management authorities provide a useful case study where environmental water management has been included as part of a broader catchment management program. The Ecosystem Approach provided a set of principles that should be considered in the design of effective ICM in the future.