Ecohydrology, floodplain water bodies, European legal provisions and the future

Using the ecohydrology concept for mitigating or resolving pressures on the natural environment caused by human activities is a successful way to find low-technology solutions which comprise the use of ecosystem services provided by dedicated ecosystems. Today this approach faces constraints by lack of area in highly developed countries, or related to legal tools established by the European Community. Even more important are climate change effects and the inevitable response of ecological systems, which interfere with their present resilience. Science is called on providing new strategies and tools to better predict the future of ecosystem services and how climate change effects can be mitigated or transformation activities can be initiated.