Human interference within riverine systems has substantially altered the regimes of the natural hydrological cycle. This can be characterised by large changes in water discharge and sediment fluxes which have led to degradation of riverine ecosystems and biodiversity across many large river basins of the world, resulting in hydro-ecological surprises. This review summarizes major unknowns including human environment interactions and hydrological alterations and how they lead to degradation of riverine ecosystems through different bio-geochemical processes. It proposes to identify the state of riverine ecosystems using a stress–strain analysis approach and to develop integrated interdisciplinary modelling for supporting conservation, adaptation or transformation strategies for riverine ecosystem management at different states.

河流系统内的人为干扰已大大改变了自然水文循环的形式。其特征可能是排水和沉积物通量发生了巨大变化，导致世界上许多大型流域的河流生态系统和生物多样性退化，从而导致了水文生态学的突飞猛进。这篇综述总结了主要的未知因素，包括人类环境相互作用和水文变化，以及它们如何通过不同的生物地球化学过程导致河流生态系统退化。它建议使用应力-应变分析方法来识别河流生态系统的状态，并开发综合的跨学科模型，以支持不同状态下河流生态系统管理的保护，适应或转化策略。