Sustainable Management of Delta Ecosystems Resilience : Case Studies on Delta Adaptation Pathways

This book bridges the gap between research, practice, and policy by offering practical insights and evidence-based solutions. It provides a comprehensive guide to addressing the pressing challenges posed by climate change and extensive anthropogenic activities on the health of global delta ecosystems. Through in-depth analysis, the book examines delta ecosystem resiliency, sustainable practices, and strategies for restoring and safeguarding natural resources. The book underscores the critical importance of studying rivers for their resilience, emphasizing the biophysical aspects of riverine landscapes and their interactions with ecosystems. It highlights how urbanization, groundwater extraction, agricultural intensification, channel regulation, and upstream activities like water withdrawals, diversion, and sediment trapping combine with coastal hazards - such as sea level rise, salinity intrusion, and hurricanes - to jeopardize delta social-ecological systems. Modern geospatial technologies play a prominent role, with discussions on data mining, analysis, modeling, assessment, and visualization techniques.

The book explores appropriate management strategies and cutting-edge approaches to delta health management, leveraging open-source software, statistical programming, modeling platforms, and artificial intelligence. These strategies aim to address the multifaceted challenges of delta management while contributing to multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG2, SDG6, SDG13, SDG14, SDG15, and SDG17. Organized into thematic chapters, the book combines theoretical frameworks, empirical research, and actionable recommendations. It integrates data from diverse delta regions to provide a holistic perspective, enhanced by diagrams, charts, maps, and case studies for improved understanding and practical application. This approach ensures the book serves as both a foundational reference and an inspirational guide for fostering resilient and sustainable delta ecosystems capable of withstanding climate uncertainties and human-induced pressures. The book is a valuable resource for researchers, policymakers, administrators, educators, local communities, farmers, and practitioners. It offers innovative practices and adaptive strategies to promote sustainable delta ecosystem resilience in the face of climate challenges and extensive anthropogenic activities.

Dr. Chiranjit Singha received his Ph.D. in Agricultural Engineering from Visva Bharati University (A Central University), India. He is currently working as a Data-Driven Climate Vulnerability Associate in the GeoAgro program at the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), Cairo, Egypt. His research primarily focuses on data-driven approaches in Precision Agriculture, applying Machine Learning and Deep Learning techniques. In addition, his work integrates Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing for ecological and environmental analyses, disaster management, and advancing Earth observation science related to geo-environmental and hydrometeorological dynamics. Dr. Singha serves as a reviewer for several prestigious journals published by Springer, Elsevier, CRC Press, Frontiers and PLOS One. He has authored numerous journal articles, book chapters, and conference papers, and his contributions have been recognized with multiple awards. His continued commitment to research and education significantly impacts the disciplines of agriculture and geography both in India and internationally.

Dr. Satiprasad Sahoo is the founder and director of Prajukti Research Pvt Ltd in Baruipur, Kolkata, and worked as a water resource engineer at the International Centre for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas (ICARDA), Egypt.  His research interest lies in the fields of remote sensing, geographic information systems, climate-resilient agriculture, groundwater hydrology, real-time hydro-environmental modeling, watershed monitoring and development, the effect of climate change, identification of critical reaches, and environmental impact assessment. He has worked as a project officer, water resource engineer, assistant professor, and guest faculty at several institutions. He has published over 100+ research articles, book chapters, books, and technical reports in international journals and conferences.

Dr. Ajit Govind is a climatologist whose research seeks to understand the influence of climate, topography, vegetation, and human impacts on terrestrial biogeochemical processes. He has led climate change research consortia, addressing various domains such as climate dynamics, ecology, soil science, remote sensing and GIS, meteorology, hydrology, agronomy, and crop/plant physiology. Previously, Dr. Govind was a senior scientist at the French National Institute for Agricultural Research and an Associate Professor at the University of Kerala in India. Dr. Govind received his PhD from the University of Toronto in Canada, which focused on the modelling of carbon and water cycles in relation to climate change. He then completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Oregon State University in the United States, studying the biosphere-atmosphere exchange of heat and mass fluxes. He also holds a master’s degree in agricultural physics.