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Centro de Investigación del Agua y Medio Ambiente (CITA)
Centro de Investigación en Tecnología del Agua - CITA
Desarrollamos y comunicamos investigaciones realizadas en el Perú sobre nuestros ricos recursos naturales.
El Centro de Investigación y Tecnología del Agua - CITA fue creado en junio del 2017. Tiene como ejes de investigación al "Agua y Medio ambiente", y como líneas de investigación específicas "Geociencias: Agua, Atmósfera y Suelo, Seguridad Hídrica, Monitoreo Ambiental y Biorremediación".
A la fecha, ha recaudado más de 4 millones de dólares en fondos para investigación (financiados por entidades nacionales e internacionales, como USAID, Fondecyt, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Wildlife Conservation Society), desarrollado más 27 proyectos de investigación, y organizado más de 30 eventos y cursos en temas de recursos hídricos y medio ambiente. Cuenta con múltiples alianzas institucionales nacionales e internacionales para trabajos de investigación y capacitación.
Nuestros Miembros
Te invitamos a conocer a nuestros investigadores expertos en su área.
Dr. Pedro Rau
Director
Daniel Horna
Investigador
Mónica Santa-María
Investigadora
Jimmy Tarrillo
Investigador
Leo Guerrero
Colaborador
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Conoce nuestros proyectos de investigación
Proyectos enfocados en abordar desafíos globales y promover la innovación científica y tecnológica
Water Security and Climate Change Adaptation in Peruvian Glacier-Fed River Basins (RAHU)
Financiado por:
FONDECYT
Investigador principal:
Dr. Pedro Rau
EPIURA: Un enfoque multidisciplinar para la infraestructura urbana a través del mapeo de riesgo ambiental
Financiado por:
World Bank, Fondecyt
Investigador principal:
Dr. Pedro Rau
Rahu: seguridad hídrica y cambio climático en cuencas hidrográficas alimentadas por glaciares
Investigador principal:
Pedro Rau
PEGASUS: producción de energía y prevención de riesgos del almacenamiento de agua superficial en Perú
Investigador principal:
Daniel Horna
ADN AMBIENTAL: Científicos peruanos lo usan para estudiar recuperación de pozas mineras abandonadas de Madre de Dios
Investigador principal:
Mónica Santa-María Fuster
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publicaciones destacadas
Conoce las mejores publicaciones de investigación y mantente al día con los avances más recientes en tu campo.
Glacial retrat
Development of a spatial projection map of glacial retreat based on vulnerability maps in the Central Cordillera, Peru
Increase in average global temperature over the last few decades has caused an accelerated retreat of tropical glaciers. Andean populations live in strict dependence on the water services provided by mountains and glaciers. The present study aims to generate a glacier melt projection map in the Peruvian Central Cordillera based on vulnerability maps over the 1990–2021 period. Seven satellite images were selected to determine the changes in glacier coverage based on normalized indexes. Subsequently, seven parametric maps consisting of terrain and climate characteristics were assimilated into a vulnerability analysis based on the frequency index and the Shannon entropy index model, allowing one to identify areas most susceptible to glacial retreat. The results show that the most important criteria for the southern and northern glacial study areas are surface temperature, elevation, precipitation, aspect, orientation, and slope. The validation results revealed the most accurate set of parameters from the vulnerability map in terms of projecting melting areas and were used to produce a spatial projection map for the period 2021–2055. From 2021, a glacier loss in the range 84–98% would be reached by the 2050s.
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Hydrologycal impacts
Scientific evidence of the hydrological impacts of nature-based solutions at the catchment scale
The introduction of nature-based solutions (NbS) in catchments has the potential to increase the cost-effectiveness, flexibility, and reliability of water management practices aimed at improving water security. However, the scientific-evidence base of the hydrological impacts of NbS is still weak, and there is therefore a risk that catchment interventions might not lead to the desired hydrological outcomes. This is especially important when assessing NbS-based catchment interventions before their implementation, as this requires robust simulation tools capable of effectively managing the uncertainties associated with future forecasts. This study aims to review the hydrological impacts of different NbS intervention types for water management. First, we present an NbS typology and the corresponding dominant hydrological impacts. We then use this typology to review the strength of the current evidence of the effect of NbS interventions on the hydrological response at the catchment-scale. Our results demonstrate that the effectiveness of each NbS type hinges on specific conditions such as location, design, and environmental factors. For instance, micro-reservoirs notably enhance surface storage and evaporation, while infiltration trenches reduce runoff but can increase soil erosion. Our global analysis highlights the need for an improved understanding of NbS catchment impacts and careful planning of NbS interventions as a key for successful long-term implementation of NbS. These include participatory approaches with stakeholder involvement in NbS co-design, knowledge co-production, and novel data collection to support locally relevant adaptation strategies, and to increase water security on the long term. This article is categorized under: Science of Water > Hydrological Processes Engineering Water > Planning Water Water and Life > Conservation, Management, and Awareness.
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Diversity
Assessing fish diversity in abandoned mining ponds in Madre de Dios, Peru, using environmental DNA.
The Peruvian region of Madre de Dios is a biodiversity hotspot located in the Andean-Amazon region. Since the 1970s, it has experienced the harsh effects of artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM), which has transformed the primary forests into numerous small mining ponds left abandoned after extraction. Preliminary surveys indicate that these ponds are being recolonized by surrounding biodiversity. These assessments are typically carried out using traditional methods that are costly, difficult to deploy at multiple locations, and have raised safety concerns. In this context, environmental DNA (eDNA) becomes a useful tool for biodiversity monitoring due to its simplicity for sample collection and performance to identify taxonomic groups. In this study, we evaluated fish biodiversity in two mining ponds created by ASGM along with two nearby pristine lakes, unimpacted by mining operations but also influenced by seasonal flooding. We compared two alternative eDNA processing methods and contrasted our results with historic data from traditional biodiversity monitoring. Both eDNA-based methods yielded comparable results, varying only in logistic requirements and costs. In total, we detected 85 fish MOTUs (22 at the species level) from 5 orders, 22 families, and 41 genera. Some of the species identified with eDNA were rarely registered by traditional monitoring, and we could identify 6 genera associated with ASGM mining ponds only. A major restriction of the eDNA approach in this location was the insufficient local taxa registered in genomic databases which limited our taxonomic resolution. Despite this limitation, our results indicate that eDNA could be a powerful tool for biodiversity estimations in the Western Amazon, identifying more taxa, with much less time and money invested than traditional monitoring. Our results also confirm that abandoned mining ponds are being recolonized by surrounding ichthyofauna, reaching richness levels above nearby unmined oxbow lakes used as reference.
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