Abstract
Characterisation of hydromorphological attributes is crucial for effective river management. Such information is often overlooked in tropical regions such as the Philippines where river management strategies mainly focus on issues around water quality and quantity. We address this knowledge gap using the River Styles Framework as a template to identify the diversity of river morphodynamics. We identify eight distinct River Styles (river types) in the Bislak catchment (586 km2) in the Philippines, showing considerable geomorphic diversity within a relatively small catchment area. Three River Styles in a Confined valley setting occupy 57% of the catchment area, another three in a partly confined valley setting occupy 37%, and two in the remaining 6% are found in a laterally unconfined valley setting. Five characteristic downstream patterns of River Styles were identified across the catchment. We observe that variation in channel slope for a given catchment area (i.e., total stream power) is insufficient to differentiate between river types. Hence, topographic analyses should be complemented with broader framed, catchment-specific approaches to river characterisation. The outputs and understandings from the geomorphic analysis of rivers undertaken in this study can support river management applications by explicitly incorporating understandings of river diversity and dynamics. This has the potential to reshape how river management is undertaken, to shift from reactive, engineering-based approaches that dominate in the Philippines, to more sustainable, ecosystem-based approaches to management.
Highlights
Recognition of morphological diversity and understanding of river processes are essential for effective river management (Brierley and Fryirs 2005; Gurnell et al 2015; Rinaldi et al 2016; Hohensinner et al 2018)
The new insights provided by the River Styles Framework can be used to develop pro-active and effective strategies for managing river systems that works with the river
This study utilises the River Styles Framework to show that sustainable river management should account for geomorphic insight into both the character and behaviour of rivers
Summary
Recognition of morphological diversity and understanding of river processes (dynamics) are essential for effective river management (Brierley and Fryirs 2005; Gurnell et al 2015; Rinaldi et al 2016; Hohensinner et al 2018). Imposed boundary conditions (i.e., geological and terrain controls) dictate the valley setting and topography of the landscape within which rivers adjust, while flux boundary conditions such as the interaction of water discharge and sediment transport induce reach-scale variability in morphodynamics (Brierley and Fryirs 2005). Integrating principles from hydrology, geomorphology, and ecology strengthen the potential of development of sustainable river management programs (Brierley 2008; Brierley et al 2019). This requires detailed information of river morphological diversity across multiple spatiotemporal scales (Gurnell et al 2015)
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