An Integrated Environmental Assessment of a Peri-Urban Amazonian River Informed by Sociohydrological Concepts

Peri-urban Amazonian rivers are increasingly affected by interacting pressures associated with recreational use, land-cover change, water-quality degradation, and flood exposure, requiring integrated approaches to support environmental management. This study developed a multi-indicator environmental assessment of the Tena River (Ecuador), informed by sociohydrological concepts. Flood exposure was evaluated using outputs from a TETIS–Iber hydrological–hydraulic modeling framework previously calibrated and validated for the Tena River basin. Simulated inundation scenarios for 2-, 10-, and 100-year return periods were analyzed at the Puente Ikiam and Tazayaku recreational sites. Riparian vegetation dynamics were evaluated using PlanetScope-derived NDVI (2016–2024), recreational water quality was assessed according to Ecuadorian Ministerial Agreement AM 097-A, and community perception was characterized through surveys and participatory mapping. Hydraulic simulations identified increasing water depths and inundation extents with increasing return periods, while NDVI analysis revealed a decline in dense riparian vegetation between 2016 and 2024. Water-quality monitoring showed episodic fecal coliform exceedances at urban recreational sites, and community responses highlighted strong concern about river degradation but limited collective environmental action. Rather than developing a fully coupled sociohydrological model, this study integrates hydrological, ecological, and social evidence within a sociohydrological framework to identify priority areas for flood-risk management, riparian restoration, water-quality protection, and participatory governance in an urban Amazonian river.