Eutrophication is a major problem in the Baltic Sea, as a result of increased loading of nitrogen and phosphorus. In the coastal parts of Östergötland the soil largely consists of clay and contains high levels of phosphorus bound to clay particles. Erosion of the soil in agricultural areas makes the water turbid and transports phosphorus to the Baltic Sea. The aim of this project was to examine the relationship between phosphorus and turbidity in the coastal streams of Östergötland. The aim was also to evaluate the possibility to use turbidity as a surrogate measure for phosphorus.

Understory vegetation and fungi are regarded as important ecological drivers of processes like productivity and nutrient cycling in boreal forests. Whilst those processes are linked to soil water content, relatively little is known about the sources of soil water for these forest components. During early autumn in boreal forests, temperature falls and large events of rain are frequent which may influence soil water availability. To better understand the autumn plant-soil-fungi water relationships in this ecosystem, I used stable isotopes techniques in this study to examine the water sources for ericaceous shrubs and fungi in a Scots pine forest following a large, early autumn rain event. I hypothesize that ericaceous shrubs of two functional groups (evergreen vs.

Making decisions have always been part of human life. Political decisions consist of many participants with both formal and informal ways to highlight problems and reach the political agenda. Processes difficult for an individual to distinguish and understand surround political decision-making. The purpose of this study is to investigate the decision process for a specific political issue, Swedish wine producers' desire to be able to sell their own wine at their vineyard; gårdsförsäljning. This is currently prohibited in the Swedish model due to an alcohol monopoly.

Forestry affects most of the forest-covered land in Sweden. In the landscape, the most common stream type is headwaters, which are important sites for many processes and organisms in both the terrestrial and the aquatic ecosystems. The aim of this study was to investigate how the abundance of benthic invertebrate functional feeding groups in headwater streams develops after clear-cutting and if it also is possible to detect a change in the composition of feeding groups. The study also attempts to determine what factors have an effect on temporal changes in abundance of these groups. For the study, 11 sites in northern Sweden were sampled for benthic invertebrates using a Surber-sampler, and for each site canopy-cover and pH was obtained.

It is hard to find streaming waters where humans haven?t affected the fish populations or the running water it self. In many streams the fish populations are over harvested and this results in a lack of older and larger fish. This is also the situation for many populations of Grayling (Thymallus spp.). To be able to develop management plans and to perform actions that improve the situation for the grayling, it is therefore crucial to know what natural, by humans unaffected populations look like.

Forest streams and the associated riparian zones are sensitive to disturbances and changes that occur within these riparian areas. Particularly sensitive are small streams of low order, which will have large impacts down-stream. The disturbances that occur in the riparian zones are reflected quickly in the stream. Driving with forestry machines in the riparian zone will have detrimental effects to the soil and water. Driving the machines will lead to changes in the mineral soil composition, resulting in the reduction of porosity, less infiltration, compaction, and an increased bulk density.

Running water-pathways have played an important roll in Sweden and frequently been manipulated. One profound change was made during the period of logging when streams were cleared from obstacles as big boulders, sharp bends and side-streams. Dams and different constructions gave control of the stream water and the streams became channel-like with a homogen structure. This interference gave problems for many fish populations and resulted in a shortage of feeding habitat, over-wintering habitat, spawning habitat, unnatural flow regimes, sedimentation, unnatural temperature fluctuations. Many of these historical changes of the watersheds are now subjects for restoration, ie., bring back the streams to what we believed it was before the change. However, what once existed in terms of complexity is now gone and difficult toreplace.

The reduction of coarse, dead wood is considered to be the biggest threat to flora and faunain boreal forests. Extensive harvest of logging residues would increase this reduction evenmore. However, the role of dead wood created at final felling for boreal, epixylic species isstill largely unclear. It is therefore of interest to examine whether epixylic species inhabit thedead wood in young, boreal stands, especially species considered to be confined to forests inlate successional stages.The aim of this study was to investigate whether forest-interior species in fact can inhabitearly-successional forests arisen after logging. The study was conducted in young standsbordering dead wood rich woodland key habitats.

Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere contributes to the greenhouse effect, which is essential tolife on our planet. Furthermore, it plays an important part of the photosynthesis andrespiration of the world?s organisms. Since the start of the industrial revolution the amount ofcarbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased exponentially. The main source is theextensive burning of fossil fuels.

Increasing attention is being given to acid sulphate soils wherever they occur. The problems that leaching sulphate soils gives with significant lowerings of pH and mobilization of heavy metals influence large spectra of our society from fisheries to agriculture to construction. Mapping these soils is consequently of great importance and the methods of doing this is very much lacking in function and precision. This study was therefore carried out to investigate whether conductivity in running water can be used as a simple instrument to identify acid sulphate soils in the catchment. 31 coastal streams in the county of Västerbotten were analyzed for different catchment properties such as occurence of marine sediments and basic water chemistry including conductivity and sulphate.

In 2006, Stora Enso Skog implemented an education program in water management for harvester operators, timber purchasers, cut block planners and supervisors. The focus of the program was creating stream crossings with minimal harm to the stream and the surrounding riparian area. This main purpose of this study was to determine the difference in work procedures before and after participating in the program. The methodology consisted of field studies and interviews with harvester operators and their supervisors. The field study looked at how the streams had been crossed concerning the number of crossings, visible damage to the stream and/or the riparian area made by the machines. Biological parameters such as the width and dept of the stream and amount of large woody debris in the stream were also measured. The field result from 30 harvesting sites showed no significant difference between sites that had been harvested before or after the education program. But the harvester operators and their supervisors experienced an increased concern for watersheds after the educational program.

During the last two hundred years many wetlands and streams in Sweden have been lowered to provide land for agriculture and forestry. Some of the coastal wetlands and streams probably served as spawning sites for certain species of fish in the Baltic Sea, but the present situation is not well known. As standardized methods to monitor fish in running waters are carried out during late summer or autumn, there is a need for methods to sample spring-spawning fish in these streams.The aim of this study was to survey the lower kilometer stretch of Hammerstaån in Stockholm, to investigate the extent to which the stream is used by spring-spawning fish. Furthermore, the study aims to evaluate a new type of survey fishing gill net called strömöversiktsnät (SÖN). This was done by comparing the catch of fish by SÖN with that of fyke nets.

The popularity of video games has been boosted by the rise of user-generated live streaming platforms, and the biggest of them all is Twitch. The popularity depends on Twitch alignment of live streamed video games. The stream is created by a player who broadcast and streams the video game online. The video game can then be watched by a viewer that is interested in the video game. In every stream there is an implemented live chat that allows the viewer to interact with the streamer while the stream is online.

The global biodiversity loss is mainly due to human activities such as an intensification of forestry. Boreal forest ecosystems in Fennoscandia are characterized by disturbances such as forest fires, storms and floods. However, industrial forestry practices suppress forest fires and change the landscape, leading to a loss of habitats and associated species. Particularly lichen species with slow adaptation abilities and a strong substrate specificity face an extinction debt in boreal forests since their substrates are long-lived but no longer created. In this study the species-substrate relationship of two red-listed forest-fire dependent lichen species Carbon-icola anthracophila and C.

During the last two hundred years many wetlands and streams in Sweden have been lowered to provide land for agriculture and forestry. Some of the coastal wetlands and streams probably served as spawning sites for certain species of fish in the Baltic Sea, but the present situation is not well known. As standardized methods to monitor fish in running waters are carried out during late summer or autumn, there is a need for methods to sample spring-spawning fish in these streams.The aim of this study was to survey the lower kilometer stretch of Hammerstaån in Stockholm, to investigate the extent to which the stream is used by spring-spawning fish. Furthermore, the study aims to evaluate a new type of survey fishing gill net calledströmöversiktsnät (SÖN). This was done by comparing the catch of fish by SÖN with that of fyke nets.