Training Session in EU Universities

Provisional schedule and practical information

Training in Ghent University - October 13-15th :

Program: PRACTICAL TRAINING: WATER QUALITY MANAGEMENT

Practical information - Travel:

TRAVEL
Brussels International Airport Intercity Train (IC) 16 euros
-> Ghent City Center
Ghent City Center -> Ghent Bus/Tram 3 euros/1 hour for public
University transport
Ghent University -> Ghent City Bus/Tram 3 euros/1 hour for public
Center transport
Ghent City Center -> Brussels Intercity Train (IC) 16 euros
International Airport
HOUSING
Rooms available on Airbnb

Training in Girona and BOKU University October 18-20th:

Travel Ghent -> Girona or Ghent -> Wien on October 16th or 17th

Training in Girona October 18th-20th Training in BOKU (Wien) October 18th-20th

Program : to be added Program : to be added

TRAVEL
Brussels Plane 75-90 euros Brussels Plane 50-75 euros
International (Brussels International (Brussels
Airport -> Airlines or Airport -> Airlines)
Barcelona Ryanair) Vienna
International International
Airport Airport
Barcelona Train: local 4.10 euros + Vienna Train 4.40 euros
International train + 16 euros + 19 International
Airport -> Intercity train euros Aiport ->
Girona City + bus BOKU
University
HOUSING
Housing possible at Girona University Information to be added
Residence, close to the Science Faculty: 25 Rooms available on Airbnb

1
euros/day, small apartment with 2 single
rooms and shared kitchen
Rooms available on Airbnb

CONSEA 2nd in person meeting October 23-24th (venue: Moulis):

TRAVEL
From Girona From BOKU
BOKU train 4.40 euros
University ->
Vienna
International
Airport
Vienna Plane 150 euros
International (Brussels
Girona University ->Toulouse
Airport -> Airlines 1
Bus (Eurolines)
Toulouse stop)
31 euros
International
Airport
Toulouse Tram line 1.30 euros
International (Tisseo)
Airport ->
Toulouse City
Center
From Toulouse
Common transportation from Toulouse to Moulis will be organized by UPS
HOUSING
Housing in Moulis: 20 euros/person/day (meals excluded)

Training in Toulouse University: venue Moulis October 25-27th

HOUSING
Housing in Moulis: 20 euros/person/day (meals excluded)
Moulis Toulouse International Airport
Common transportation from Moulis to Toulouse Airport will be organized by UPS

2
Annex I Provisional schedule Girona University

Biodiversity, conservation and restoration

Coordination: Dra Anna Vila-Gispert and Dra Marta Muoz
(Department of Environmental Sciences, UdG)

1) Biodiversity assessment (18th October 2017, 10:00 to 13:00)

Teacher: Dr. Dani Boix, Department of Environmental Sciences

What is biodiversity? Elements of biodiversity. Convention on Biological Diversity. How many

biodiversity "inhabits" the Earth? Biodiversity measures. Biodiversity as a tool for conservation
and management. Biodiversity and stability. Ecosystem functioning and biodiversity. Biodiversity
distribution patterns. Gradients in biodiversity.

2) Genetic resources in environmental management (18th October 2017, 15:00 to 18:00)

Teacher: Dr. Jos Luis Garca Marn, Department of Biology

Basic genetic principles for the description of plant and animal diversity and their current
distribution. Laboratory and statistical genetic methods to assess the genetic effects of human
actions in living organisms. Assessment of different strategies for conservation of genetic
resources under sustainable development and climate change based on case studies.

3) Tools for Conservation Biology (19th October 2017, 10:00 to 13:00 and from 15:00 to 19:00)
Teacher: Dr. Pere Pons, Department of Environmental Sciences

Priorities in the conservation of biodiversity: criteria and quantitative assessment. Decision-

making in conservation. International legislation for the conservation of biodiversity. Tools for
in-situ conservation of biodiversity: goals, planning and techniques for habitat management.
Practical classes based on case studies.

4) Management and restoration of Aquatic ecosystems (20th October 2017, from 10:00 to
19:00, field trip)
Teacher: Dr. Xavier Quintana, Department of Environmental Sciences

In-situ examples of management and restoration of aquatic ecosystems: the case of Empord
wetland

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Annex II Provisional Schedule Ghent University

PRACTICAL TRAINING: WATER QUALITY MANAGEMENT

Prof. Dr. P. Goethals

Eng. Niels De Troyer
Eng. Wout Van Echelpoel

Schedule:

Date & Hour Subject

06/10 1 pm 4.00 pm F0.014 Introduction

13/10 7.30 am 7 pm Zwalm river basin Sampling + sample processing

16/10 7.30 am 7 pm Labs F-building Identification of macroinvertebrates

Contact:
Niels De Troyer niels.detroyer@ugent.be

Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology and Aquatic Ecology

Ghent University

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CASE STUDY

Assessment of the water quality of the Zwalm river basin

1. Sampling

1.1 Task distribution (rotating system)

Sampling location 1: Verrebeek

Artificial substrates + field protocol Group A

Handnet + river profile + secchi Group B
Hardness + DO field kit + multiprobe Group C
Nitrite + nitrate + ammonium + orthophosphate Group D

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Sampling location 2: Zwalmbeek before wastewater treatment plant (WWTP)

Artificial substrates + field protocol Group D

Handnet + river profile + secchi Group A
Hardness + DO field kit + multiprobe Group B
Nitrite + nitrate + ammonium + orthophosphate Group C

Sampling location 3: Zwalmbeek after wastewater treatment plant (WWTP)

Artificial substrates + field protocol Group C

Handnet + river profile + secchi Group D
Hardness + DO field kit + multiprobe Group A
Nitrite + nitrate + ammonium + orthophosphate Group B

Sampling location 4: Boembeke molen after weir

Artificial substrates + field protocol Group B

Handnet + river profile + secchi Group C
Hardness + DO field kit + multiprobe Group D
Nitrite + nitrate + ammonium + orthophosphate Group A

1.2 Task description

Collection of the artificial substrates (AS):

Materials: 3 buckets + lids, tape and marker, knife
Pull AS out of the water and transfer them a.s.a.p. in the buckets
1 bag per bucket
Fill buckets half with water and add some ethanol
Clearly label the buckets (and not the lids) by means of tape and marker: group number,
date, sampling location and sampling method (AS)
Bring materials back to the trailer

Handnet:
Materials: wading suit, handnet, bucket + lid, tape, marker
Sample downstream from AS
Sample during 5 minutes by using the kick sampling method: kick the bottom with your
feet whilst walking backwards against the current. Sample all possible habitats (e.g.
under stones, between vegetation, pieces of wood).
Rinse the sample from time to time in order to remove sludge
Transfer sample to bucket and add ethanol
Clean the handnet
Clearly label the bucket (and not the lid) by means of tape and marker: group number,
date, sampling location and sampling method (= handnet)
Return materials to the trailer

6
Measuring by means of Multi probe

Calibration of pH, EC, DO and T

Take sample in bucket
Measure pH, EC, DO and T by slowly moving back and forth perpendicular to the water
surface

Chemical field kits:

Nitrate, nitrite, ammonium, orthophosphate, hardness, DO
Procedure will be explained in situ and is also given in the box
Keep materials together and don't mix kits
Transfer waste of field kits to indicated reservoir
Work precisely and pay special attention to the units

Profile of the river:

Materials: tape measure, rope with nodes (per 20 cm), stone
Procedure
o Fix the tape measure at both banks
o Quantify the depth of the river using the rope with nodes each meter
Note the depth of the water and make a graph

Field protocol:
While someone of the group is collecting the AS, the others fill in the field protocol

2. Sample processing

2.1 Handnet samples

Rinse handnet sample on a couple of sieves with decreasing mesh size
Transfer remains to a white tray
Pick out the organisms and store them in small flasks with ethanol
Label the flasks carefully with a pencil (place a labelled paper in the flasks)

2.2 Artificial substrates

Open the artificial substrates with a knife
Rinse one artificial substrate at a time on the sieve outside
Put the sieve rest into a labelled plastic pot, please be careful to separate the AS of each
sampling location
Make a new AS by replacing the bricks in a new potato net, close the net with a rope
Rinse the sieve carefully between every sample, turn the sieve to remove every rest
Rinse buckets and covers! Remove labels!
Pick out the organisms in the lab and transfer them to small flasks with ethanol
Label the flasks carefully with a pencil (place a labelled paper in the flasks)

7
3. Identification and data analysis

3.1 BBI (De Pauw & Vannevel, 1991)

Identify the organisms up to the given taxonomic level (see taxonomic list BBI on
Minerva).
Use table on p. 6 to determine BBI:
o Determine lowest tolerance score (TS) observed and its frequency. The BBI
value is on this row.
o Determine the total amount of different taxa > 1. The crossing with the
determined row is the BBI.
Complete the assessment based on following criteria:

BBI Class Assessment Colour

Tolerantieklasse 9-10 I Very good biological water quality Blue

Aantal taxa
Indicatorgroepen
Klassefrequentie 0-1 2-5 6-10 11-15 16
7-8 II Good biological water quality Green
1. Plecoptera 2 - 7 8 9 10
Heptagoniidae 1 5 6 7 8 9
5-6 III Average biological water quality Yellow
2. Trichoptera (met koker) 2 - 6 7 8 9
1 5 5 6 7 8
3-4 IV Bad biological water quality Orange
3. Ancylidae >2 - 5 6 7 8
Ephemeroptera 1-2 3 4 5 6 7
0-2
(excl. Heptageniidae) V Very poor biological water quality Red
4. Aphelocheirus 1 3 4 5 6 7
Odonata
Gammaridae
Mollusca (excl. Sphaeriidae)

5. Asellidae 1 2 3 4 5 -
Hirudinea
Sphaeriidae
Hemiptera (excl. Aphelocheirus)

6. Tubificidae 1 1 2 3 - -
Chironomus thummi-plumosus

7. Syrphidae-Eristalinae 1 0 1 1 - -

3.2 MMIF (Gabriels et al., 2010)

The MMIF can be calculated with the provided excel sheet. Five metrics are used in this index:

8
 Metric taxa richness
The metric taxa richness is calculated as the total number of taxa (according to the specified
levels of identification) of which one or more individuals were found in the sample.

Metric number of EPT taxa

The metric number of EPT taxa is calculated as the total number of taxa (according to the
specified levels of identification) belonging to Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and/or Trichoptera of
which one or more individuals were found in the sample.

Metric number of other sensitive taxa

The metric number of other sensitive taxa is calculated as the total number of taxa (according to
the specified levels of identification), other than the EPT taxa, with a tolerance score of six or
more. The list of tolerance scores (ranging from 10 for very intolerant to 1 for very tolerant) for
all taxa is given in Gabriels et al. (2010) and can be found on Minerva.
Metric Shannon-Wiener Index
The metric Shannon-Wiener Index is calculated using the following formula (Shannon & Weaver,
1949):


= ln
=1

With the taxa richness and the relative abundance of the ith taxon.
Metric Mean Tolerance Score
The metric mean tolerance score is calculated as the sum of the tolerance scores of taxa of
which one or more individuals were found in the sample, divided by the total number of taxa.

In order to integrate the values of the five metrics into one index, first they have to be
converted into scores of 0 to 4. Per water type criteria are set for each metric by which the value
can be converted into the corresponding score. These criteria are summarized in Gabriels et al.
(2010) per water type. The overall index for a sampling point is equal to the sum of the five
metric scores, which is a number between 0 and 20, divided by 20. This results in an EQR value
that is comprised within the interval 0-1. Finally, use following type-specific criteria to determine
the water quality:

3.3 The Prati-index (Prati et al., 1979)

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The Prati-index assesses the physical-chemical water quality by means of eight parameters:
dissolved oxygen saturation (%DO), chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand
(BOD5), ammonium-N (NH4+-N), nitrate-N (NO3--N), chloride (Cl-), alkyl benzene sulphonates
(ABS) and pH. There are three sub-Prati-indices that can be calculated:

Oxygen Prati index which takes only the %DO into account
Basic Prati index which combines the information of %DO, COD and NH4+-N
Full Prati index consists of all 8 variables
Each index is calculated by transforming the appropriate measured values Y to the respective
index values X (table on p. 8) after which the average is taken. Complete the assessment by
means of the following criteria:

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11
3.4 The Dutch-Method (Beckers & Steegmans, 1979)

The index consists of three parameters: %DO, BOD5, NH4+- N

Calculate the score for each parameter with the following table:

Score %DO BOD5 (mg.L-1) NH4+- N (mg N.L-1)

1 ]90, 110] 3 0,5

]70, 90]
2 ]3, 6] ]0.5, 1]
]110, 120]

]50, 70]
3 ]6, 9] ]1, 2]
]120, 130]

]30, 50]
4 ]9, 15] ]2, 5]
]130, 150]

30
5 > 15 >5
> 150

The index is the sum of all scores

Complete the assessment based on the following criteria:
Class Colour code score

1 blue ]3, 4.5]

2 green ]4.5, 7.5]

3 yellow ]7.5, 10.5]

4 orange ]10.5, 13.5]

5 red ]13.5, 15]

3.5 The LISEC-Method (Beckers & Steegmans, 1979)

The index consists of four parameters: %DO, BOD5, NH4+- N, oPO43-- P

Training sessions in EU universities provisional schedule Page 12 sur 16

 Calculate the score for each parameter with the table on p. 10
The index is the sum of all scores
Complete the assessment based on the following criteria:
Class Colour code SUM score Quality

1 Blue ]4, 6] Excellent, very pure

2 Green ]6, 10] Good, pure

3 Yellow ]10, 14] Moderate, doubtful

4 Orange ]14, 18] Bad, polluted

5 Red ]18, 20] Very bad, heavily polluted

Score %DO BOD5 (mg.L-1) NH4+- N (mg N.L-1) oPO43- P (mg P.L-1)

1 ]90, 110] 3 0,5 0,05

]70, 90]
2 ]3, 6] ]0.5, 1] ]0.05, 0.25]
]110, 120]

]50, 70]
3 ]6, 9] ]1, 2] ]0.25, 0.90]
]120, 130]

]30, 50]
4 ]9, 15] ]2, 5] ]0.90, 1.50]
]130, 150]

30
5 > 15 >5 > 1.50
> 150

4 Report
This will be communicated via Minerva. Deadline submission report = 7/04/2017.

5 References
Beckers, B. & Steegmans, R. (1979). De kwaliteit van de oppervlaktewateren in Limburg.

De Pauw, N., & Vannevel, R. (n.d.). Macroinvertebraten en waterkwaliteit. Determineersleutels van

macroinvertebraten en beoordelingsmethoden van de waterkwaliteit. Stichting Leefmilieu,
Antwerpen, 1991, Dossier nr. 11,316 p. (1ste en 2de druk).

Training sessions in EU universities provisional schedule Page 13 sur 16

Gabriels W, Lock K, De Pauw N & Goethals PLM (2010). Multimetric Macroinvertebrate Index
Flanders (MMIF) for biological assessment of rivers and lakes in Flanders (Belgium). Limnologica.

Prati, L., Pavanello, R. & Pesarin, F., (1971), Assessment of surface water quality by a single index of
pollution, Journal of Water Resources, 5, pp 74.

Shannon, C.E. & Weaver, W. (1949). The mathematical theory of communication. University of Illinois
Press, Urbana, Illinois, USA. 117 p.

Training sessions in EU universities provisional schedule Page 14 sur 16

Annex III Provisional Schedule UT3-PS

- Dr Simon Blanchet (CNRS researcher, Station d'Ecologie Theorique et Exprimentale (SETE) :

Evolutionary Applications: Theory and Practice (1 day)
- Dr Loc Tudesque (CNRS, EDB lab) : The use of algae for monitoring rivers and lakes - with a
focus on diatoms (1 day)
- Ass. Prof. Monique BURRUS, Nathalie Escaravage and Laurent Pelozuelo. Biodiversity
conservation (still wait fot the exact title).
- Prof. Sovan Lek. Sampling methodology for Biodiversity conservation.

Training sessions in EU universities provisional schedule Page 15 sur 16

 Annex III Provisional Schedule BOKU

Day Date Time Excursion programme BOKU staff Non-BOKU staff

depending on
17/10/2017 getting to know BOKU (University)
Day 1 arrival time
17/10/2017 evening Vienna city tour & dinner
Welcome and Introduction to the Institute of Prof. Stefan
18/10/2017 9:00 - 9:30
Hydrobiology Schmutz
Hydropower Environmental Impact
Prof. Stefan
18/10/2017 9:30 - 10:15 Mitigation and Risk Management in the
Schmutz
Lower Mekong
Development of Bio-assessment Methods for Dr. Ilse
18/10/2017 10:30 - 11:15
the Himalya-Hindu-Kush Region Schwarzinger
Day 2 Bio-monitoring Programme of the Mekong
River Comission (MRC) in the Lower Mekong Dr. Ilse
18/10/2017 11:15 - 12:00
Region (given based on the demand of Schwarzinger
participants)
Federal Environmental Agency - Monitoring
and Conservation Programmes of Surface Dr. Robert
18/10/2017 14:00 - 17:00
Waters in Austria (lectures and visit of Konecny
laboratories)
OPTION 1: Visit of the inter-university
Research Institute WaterClusterLunz (Topics:
Biogeochemistry and Ecohydrology of Dr. Gabriele
Day 3 19/10/2017 full day
Riverine Landscapes, Aquatic Lipid Research Weiglhofer
and Ecotoxicology, Plankton Ecology, visiting
BOKU course Limnology)
OPTION 2: Ecohydromorphological mapping Dr. Michaela
Pielach River (field work) Poppe
OPTION 3: Excursion to Aquaculture farms
19/10/2017
(Common Carp, Trout, Sturgeon)
Prof. Herwig
functioning & biodiversity of fish-pass
Waidbacher
20/10/2017 9:00 - 12:00 hydropowerplant Freudenau including electro
& Paul
Day 4 fishing fieldwork Meulenbroek
electro fishing data analyses (fish diversity,
20/10/2017 13:00 - 17:00 Pablo Rauch
abundance, biomass)
guided tour hydropowerplant Freudenau Hydropowerplant
Day 5 21/10/2017 9:00 - 13:00
(Vienna Danube river) operator
Day 6 22/10/2017 Departure to Toulouse

Training sessions in EU universities provisional schedule Page 16 sur 16