Dr Laurence Carvalho

Dr Laurence Carvalho

Freshwater Ecologist

Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
Bush Estate
Penicuik
Midlothian
EH26 0QB
T: +44 (0)131 4454343
F: +44 (0)131 4453943
E-mail: Dr Laurence Carvalho
 

Specialities: Limnology, eutrophication, phytoplankton, aquatic plants, assessment of ecological quality (Water Framework Directive & Habitats Directive).

Research interests

I am interested in the structure and functioning of lake ecosystems, predominantly carrying out research on algal (phytoplankton and benthic algae) and aquatic macrophyte communities in lakes. I have a particular focus on the ecological responses to eutrophication and climate change in freshwaters and the underlying factors that affect the sensitivity of lakes to such pressures.

Much of my research applies an ecological understanding to the development and application of phytoplankton monitoring and classification tools required for the Water Framework Directive and macrophyte monitoring and condition assessments for the Habitats Directive. Developing effective indicators of ecological quality requires a good understanding of the biological responses associated with specific environmental pressures and an estimate of the uncertainty in such classification schemes associated with spatial and temporal variability and sampling/analytical error.

Current research

Completed projects

  • Risk Assessment Methodology for Determining Nutrient Impacts in Surface Freshwater Bodies (NUPHAR - Environment Agency and Scottish Environment Protection Agency)
  • Site Condition Monitoring of Standing Waters, Phase 1: Method Development (Scottish Natural Heritage)
  • Physico-chemical Conditions for Supporting Different Levels of Biological Quality for the Water Framework Directive for Freshwaters (Environment Agency)
  • Nutrient conditions for different levels of ecological status and biological quality in surface waters (Environment Agency)
  • Long-term Patterns of Change in Physical, Chemical and Biological Aspects of Water Quality at Loch Leven (Scottish Natural Heritage)
  • A survey of Lakes in the Migneint–Arenig–Dduallt pSSSI/SAC/SPA, Wales (Countryside Council for Wales)
  • Palaeoecological investigation of the nutrient and salinity history of the Loch of Stenness Marine cSAC (Scottish Natural Heritage)

Input into completed projects

  • Deriving practical guidance on the importance of nitrogen in freshwater eutrophication (Scottish Executive)
  • Site Condition Monitoring of Standing Waters, Phase 2: Site Assessments (Scottish Natural Heritage / CEH)
  • Reviewing the potential for reductions of nitrogen and phosphorus inputs in current farm systems (Defra)
  • Development of the UK Air Pollution Information System (APIS) (JNCC)
  • EUROLAKES
  • Feasibility studies on the restoration needs of four lake SSSIs (English Nature).

Brief CV

  • 2001 onwards: Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (Edinburgh research site), Scottish Freshwater Group
  • 2003 onwards: Honorary Lecturer, Division of Environmental & Evolutionary Biology, University of Glasgow
  • 2003 onwards: Member of the UK Eutrophication Forum
  • 1995-2001: Lecturer in Environmental Change, Environmental Change Research Centre (ECRC), Department of Geography, University College, London
  • 1989-1993: University of Liverpool. PhD on Experimental Limnology on Four Cheshire Meres
  • 1985-1988: University of Edinburgh. BSc (Hons) Biological Sciences (Upper Second)

(Dr Carvalho is currently on secondment to the European Commission – Joint Research Centre IES – Rural Water Ecosystems Resource Unit. He will return to CEH in November 2011.)

Selected publications

See also the NERC Open Research Archive.

Spears, Bryan M.; Gunn, Iain D.M.; Carvalho, Laurence; Winfield, Ian J.; Dudley, Bernard; Murphy, Kevin; May, Linda (2009). An evaluation of methods for sampling macrophyte maximum colonisation depth in Loch Leven, Scotland. Aquatic Botany, 91 (2). 75-81. 10.1016/j.aquabot.2009.02.007

Phillips, G.; Pietilainen, O.-P.; Carvalho, L.; Solimini, A.; Lyche Solheim, A.; Cardoso, A.C. (2008). Chlorophyll-nutrient relationships of different lake types using a large European dataset. Aquatic Ecology, 42 (2). 213-226. 10.1007/s10452-008-9180-0

Lyche Solheim, Anne; Rekolainen, Seppo; Moe, S. Jannicke; Carvalho, Laurence; Phillips, Geoff; Ptacnik, Robert; Penning, W. Ellis; Toth, Laszlo G.; O'Toole, Constance; Schartau, Ann-Kristin; Hesthagen, Trygve (2008). Ecological threshold responses in European lakes and their applicability for the Water Framework Directive (WFD) implementation: synthesis of lakes results from the REBECCA project. Aquatic Ecology, 42 (2). 317-334. 10.1007/s10452-008-9188-5

Ptacnik, R.; Lepisto, L.; Willen, E.; Brettum, P.; Andersen, T.; Rekolainen, S.; Lyche Solheim, A.; Carvalho, Laurence (2008). Quantitative responses of lake phytoplankton to eutrophication in Northern Europe. Aquatic Ecology, 42 (2). 227-236. 10.1007/s10452-008-9181-z

Ferguson, C. A.; Carvalho, L.; Scott, E. M.; Bowman, A. W.; Kirika, A.. (2008). Assessing ecological responses to environmental change using statistical models. Journal of Applied Ecology, 45 (1). 193-203. 10.1111/j.1365-2664.2007.01428.x

Carvalho, L.; Solimini, A.; Phillips, G.; van den Berg, M.; Pietilainen, O.-P.; Lyche Solheim, A.; Poikane, S.; Mischke, U. (2008). Chlorophyll Reference Conditions for European Lake Types used for Intercalibration of Ecological Status. Aquatic Ecology, 42 (2). 203-211. 10.1007/s10452-008-9189-4

Spears, Bryan M.; Carvalho, Laurence; Perkins, Rupert; Paterson, David M. (2008) Effects of light on sediment nutrient flux and water column nutrient stoichiometry in a shallow lake. Water Research, 42 (4-5). 977-986. 10.1016/j.watres.2007.09.012

Ferguson, C. A.; Bowman, A. W.; Scott, E. M.; Carvalho, L.. (2007). Model comparison for a complex ecological system. Journal of the Royal Statistical Society: Series A, 170 (3). 691-711. 10.1111/j.1467-985X.2006.00462.x

Spears, B.M.; Carvalho, L.; Paterson, D. M.. (2007.) Phosphorus partitioning in a shallow lake: implications for water quality management. Water and Environment Journal, 21 (1). 47-53. 10.1111/j.1747-6593.2006.00045.x

Cardoso, A. C.; Solimini, A.; Premazzi, G.; Carvalho, L.; Lyche, A.; Rekolainen, S. (2007). Phosphorus reference concentrations in European lakes. Hydrobiologia, 584 (1). 3-12. 10.1007/s10750-007-0584-y

Spears, Bryan M.; Carvalho, Laurence; Perkins, Rupert; Kirika, Alex; Paterson, David M. (2007). Sediment phosphorus cycling in a large shallow lake: spatio-temporal variation in phosphorus pools and release. Hydrobiologia, 584. 37-48. 10.1007/s10750-007-0610-0