Abstract of Habilitation Thesis
Water is of high importance for society, including its economy and environment. Globally, there are constant socio-economic, political, cultural and environmental changes that are interrelated. Sustainable management of environmental resources, taking into account these changes and interrelations, is a major challenge. The complex interrelations require the use of simulation models to project the impact of changes in the management and use of one resource on other resources. This habilitation thesis describes the development and application of simulation models to support the management of water and other environmental resources. It is shown that broadening the view beyond water resources management can help to reduce the pressure on water resources.
The introduction (chapter 1) is followed in chapter 2 by an analysis of discharges in the Czech part of the Elbe river basin and the effect of water management on these discharges. The following two articles describe the calibration and validation of eco-hydrological models for heavily managed river basins. Chapter 3 describes the application of water management simulation models for various river basins. Chapter 4 is on the development and application of simulation models, e.g. for calculating the cooling water demand of thermal power plants, water temperature, or the operation of water reservoirs. The simulation of the use and management of environmental resources is the subject of Chapter 5, where issues such as the consideration of ecological aspects in the operation of water reservoirs or the combined wind and hydropower generation are examined.
