About this Research Topic
Floodplain ecosystems and their associated functions represent some of the most valuable yet endangered assets for society. The proximity to water and land resources, and the suitability of low-gradient riparian areas for urban and infrastructural development have caused increasing pressures on riverine and coastal floodplain environments and ecosystems. Identifying, mapping, modelling, and monitoring floodplain ecosystems and fluvial processes are, thus, fundamental for floodplain protection and sustainable development.
Significant progress has been made in Earth sciences on water cycle monitoring, geospatial data processing, flood hazard and hydro-meteor modelling, mainly fostered by technological advancements of Earth Observation (EO), remote sensing, and computer science. Nevertheless, there are still significant knowledge gaps in understanding the interlinkages between hydrological processes and environmental, ecological, social, and economic dynamics. A transdisciplinary approach that includes indigenous knowledge and human behavior is needed to understand the heterogeneous set of interacting factors governing human-floodplain ecosystem processes and co-evolution.
This Research Topic seeks to promote and publish research investigations as well as outcomes of floodplain management case studies focused on ecosystem resources, function, risk mitigation, and assessment. Of particular interest are contributions investigating human-floodplain ecosystem interactions by integrating hydrological and ecological sciences with social, behavioral, and economic sciences. Both novel approaches and applications (e.g. best practices) are welcome. We encourage submissions that present advancements in computer science techniques, such as machine learning or analysis of sensor observations and big data, that integrate human activities and behavioral components in floodplain studies. Examples include the use of opportunistic sensing, participatory approaches, Indigenous customary knowledge and citizen science.
This Research Topic will explore the potential of applying and combining geomorphic and hydrodynamic modelling for floodplain ecosystem identification, monitoring and mapping within transdisciplinary frameworks. Analogously, environmental, ecological and social science studies addressing floodplain ecosystem management challenges are also foreseen. The goal is to stimulate transdisciplinary contributions to gather and create a community combining diverse backgrounds, expertise, data, technologies and case studies on floodplain ecosystem management and protection.
This Research Topic welcomes submissions presenting multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary studies of floodplain ecosystems that address climate, environmental, and socio-economic issues of fluvial corridors with specific regard (but not limited) to:
• Numerical modelling and mapping of floodplain ecosystem landscape features, processes, and dynamics supported by state-of-the-art topographic, hydrological, environmental, and ecological monitoring technologies (e.g. UAV, Lidar, satellites, cameras and imaging, etc.);
• The use and exploitation of EO/DTM-based geomorphic floodplain extent and water depth/dynamics mapping algorithms from continental to small scale applications in both data-rich and data-scarce regions;
• The development and application of advanced hydrodynamic (1D, Quasi-2D, 2D, and 3D) algorithms for fluvial system and hazard simulations specifically covering complex urban domains and addressing societal, climate, and economic issues;
• Geospatial data, image processing, machine learning, big data, and any AI-related computer science advancement supporting floodplain studies with specific regard to the application of satellite/UAV/webcam monitoring, informal/unstructured crowdsourcing, opportunistic sensing, gaming technologies, Indigenous customary knowledge and citizen science, especially if monitoring and modelling human-fluvial interactions;
• Environmental, geologic, biogeochemical, and ecological science studies investigating fluvial/freshwater, transition, and coastal settings dealing with floodplain ecosystem functions, management, protection, and sustainability;
• Floodplain studies dealing with water, food, and land security further supporting the merging of multidisciplinary and cross-cutting efforts linked to floodplain ecosystem values and productivity (e.g. Water-Energy-Food Nexus; Critical Zone etc.);
• Floodplain studies dealing with river basin ecosystem services, floodplain hydrologic and ecological connectivity patterns, and disconnectivity due to anthropogenic features and activities, flood/floodplain pulse, floodplain/river continuum and other topics related to the understanding and assessment of human-fluvial interactions in floodplain rivers and landscapes.
Significant progress has been made in Earth sciences on water cycle monitoring, geospatial data processing, flood hazard and hydro-meteor modelling, mainly fostered by technological advancements of Earth Observation (EO), remote sensing, and computer science. Nevertheless, there are still significant knowledge gaps in understanding the interlinkages between hydrological processes and environmental, ecological, social, and economic dynamics. A transdisciplinary approach that includes indigenous knowledge and human behavior is needed to understand the heterogeneous set of interacting factors governing human-floodplain ecosystem processes and co-evolution.
This Research Topic seeks to promote and publish research investigations as well as outcomes of floodplain management case studies focused on ecosystem resources, function, risk mitigation, and assessment. Of particular interest are contributions investigating human-floodplain ecosystem interactions by integrating hydrological and ecological sciences with social, behavioral, and economic sciences. Both novel approaches and applications (e.g. best practices) are welcome. We encourage submissions that present advancements in computer science techniques, such as machine learning or analysis of sensor observations and big data, that integrate human activities and behavioral components in floodplain studies. Examples include the use of opportunistic sensing, participatory approaches, Indigenous customary knowledge and citizen science.
This Research Topic will explore the potential of applying and combining geomorphic and hydrodynamic modelling for floodplain ecosystem identification, monitoring and mapping within transdisciplinary frameworks. Analogously, environmental, ecological and social science studies addressing floodplain ecosystem management challenges are also foreseen. The goal is to stimulate transdisciplinary contributions to gather and create a community combining diverse backgrounds, expertise, data, technologies and case studies on floodplain ecosystem management and protection.
This Research Topic welcomes submissions presenting multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary studies of floodplain ecosystems that address climate, environmental, and socio-economic issues of fluvial corridors with specific regard (but not limited) to:
• Numerical modelling and mapping of floodplain ecosystem landscape features, processes, and dynamics supported by state-of-the-art topographic, hydrological, environmental, and ecological monitoring technologies (e.g. UAV, Lidar, satellites, cameras and imaging, etc.);
• The use and exploitation of EO/DTM-based geomorphic floodplain extent and water depth/dynamics mapping algorithms from continental to small scale applications in both data-rich and data-scarce regions;
• The development and application of advanced hydrodynamic (1D, Quasi-2D, 2D, and 3D) algorithms for fluvial system and hazard simulations specifically covering complex urban domains and addressing societal, climate, and economic issues;
• Geospatial data, image processing, machine learning, big data, and any AI-related computer science advancement supporting floodplain studies with specific regard to the application of satellite/UAV/webcam monitoring, informal/unstructured crowdsourcing, opportunistic sensing, gaming technologies, Indigenous customary knowledge and citizen science, especially if monitoring and modelling human-fluvial interactions;
• Environmental, geologic, biogeochemical, and ecological science studies investigating fluvial/freshwater, transition, and coastal settings dealing with floodplain ecosystem functions, management, protection, and sustainability;
• Floodplain studies dealing with water, food, and land security further supporting the merging of multidisciplinary and cross-cutting efforts linked to floodplain ecosystem values and productivity (e.g. Water-Energy-Food Nexus; Critical Zone etc.);
• Floodplain studies dealing with river basin ecosystem services, floodplain hydrologic and ecological connectivity patterns, and disconnectivity due to anthropogenic features and activities, flood/floodplain pulse, floodplain/river continuum and other topics related to the understanding and assessment of human-fluvial interactions in floodplain rivers and landscapes.
Keywords: Floodplains, Hydrology, Geomorphic algorithms, Human sensors and behaviours, Citizen science, Modeling, Trans-disciplinarity
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
