ClimatePrep

By Eliot Levine, WWF-US

WWF-UK recently released Rivers on the Edge which highlights the beauty and challenges facing the chalk streams of southern England and northern France. Such small freshwater systems are critical to greater ecosystem functioning and act as crucial reservoirs of biodiversity. Unfortunately, being a small system means that not only are they often overlooked in conversation efforts, but they are also more vulnerable than large ecosystems. The majority of these streams are under immense pressure as they are in the greater London area. Near the end of the video, climate change adaptation in the form of water use efficiency is discussed. The adaptive methods they discuss can be implemented everywhere. Keeping water in rivers by decreasing our society’s excessive use of water gives these small systems a little bit more time to adjust to a shifting climate.