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Although it is not possible to completely eliminate flooding in an era of climate change and intensification of extreme weather events, effective flood prevention and management in river floodplains may make a significant contribution. The land use characteristics of a catchment and river valley determine, to a great extent, the functioning of a river floodplain, as well as the quantity and size of the flood pulses in the river. The paper is focused on the role played by ecohydrology in flood risk management and water quality. From the ecohydrological perspective, river floodplains are extremely important and capacious ecosystems which, being periodically flooded, absorb flood and pollutant peaks and may minimise the danger of flooding. Increased natural water retention capacity in floodplain areas and the whole basin in the face of progressive climate change is possible through three routes: the modelling of the hydrological budget of the catchment towards the sustainable ecohydrological management of floodplains, the optimal use of existing hydrotechnical infrastructure and the implementation of ecohydrological biotechnologies. Furthermore, with such a holistic perspective, the role of river floodplains is one that also enhances the resilience of the river basin against climate and anthropogenic change, as well as increasing flood safety, improving water quality and increasing its ecosystem services for society.

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The main objectives of the presented study were to quantify the transfer of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs)/polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) (polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins/polychlorinated dibenzofurans) and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (dl-PCBs) along the river continuum and to evaluate the impact of wastewater treatment plants (WTPs) located in the catchment on the river quality. The samples were collected during the spring (high water flow) and summer season (serene water flow) of 2010. The river samples were collected from five stations located along the lowland Pilica River, including two stations situated above and below the Sulejow Reservoir. At the same time, samples from the outlets of 17 WTPs were collected. As evidenced by the results, the largest WTPs discharged up to 59.09 μg toxic equivalent (TEQ) of PCDDs/PCDFs and dl-PCBs per day during high flow events and up to 26.03 μg TEQ during serene water flows. During the same time, the smallest WTPs released on average 0.81 and 0.70 μg TEQ day−1, respectively. The obtained results have also demonstrated an increase in the TEQ concentration along the Pilica River continuum (from 4.75 to 6.25 pg TEQ L−1). The exception were samples collected below the dam where 63% TEQ reduction was observed compared to samples collected above the reservoir.

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