Please see below for some publications that highlight recent progress in river system science. (Full list of publications below)
Authors: Schmitt & Eyler
In this Editorial in Science we lay out some of big unknowns and challenges around the world's largest hydropower project in Tibet
Authors: Schmitt & Rosa
Dams provide hydropower and irrigation, but they cause major impacts. Here we discuss potential trajectories and alternatives to meet future needs
Authors: Schmitt, Bizzi, Castelletti, Kondolf
This paper demonstrates how to use network-scale modeling of sediment to plan for lower impact hydropower
Authors: Barbarossa & Schmitt
Strategic planning is proposed as way to site new dams. Here we demonstrate how the same thinking can be applied to remove existing dams.
Authors: J. Smith, A. Brown
Journal name, year
One short paragraph here that explains why this publication
is important/relevant.
You can find the full list of publications on our Google Scholar.
Student and postdoctoral authors under my supervision underlined black
[41] Schmitt, R. J. P., & Eyler, B. (2025). A megadam test for China and South Asia. Science, 390(6775), 767–767. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aed9275
[40] Xu, B., Liu, Z., Yan, S., Schmitt, R. J. P., & He, X. (2025). Strategizing renewable energy transitions to preserve sediment transport integrity. Nature Sustainability, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-025-01626-5
[39] Pereira, K., Wabnitz, C. C. C., Schildt, L., Kuiper, J. J., Schmitt, R. J. P., Barbour, F., & Jouffray, J.-B. (2025). Rethinking sand circularity through sufficiency. One Earth, 8(2). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2024.11.008
[38] Schmitt, R. J. P., & Rosa, L. (2024). Dams for hydropower and irrigation: Trends, challenges, and alternatives. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 199, 114439. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2024.114439
[37] Li, D., Zhang, T., Walling, D. E., Lane, S., Bookhagen, B., Tian, S., Overeem, I., Syvitski, J., Kettner, A. J., Park, E., Koppes, M., Schmitt, R. J. P., Sun, W., Ni, J., & Ehlers, T. A. (2024). The competing controls of glaciers, precipitation, and vegetation on high-mountain fluvial sediment yields. Science Advances, 10(48), eads6196. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.ads6196
[36] Almeida, R. M., Chowdhury, A.-U.-H., Rodrigo, H., Li, M., & Schmitt, R. J. P. (2024). Offsetting the greenhouse gas footprint of hydropower with floating solar photovoltaics. Nature Sustainability, 7, 1047–1051. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-024-01384-w
[35] Barbarossa, V., & Schmitt, R. J. P. (2024). Strategic restoration-development mitigates trade-offs between hydropower and fish habitat fragmentation in the Mekong. One Earth, 7(9), 1096–1107. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2024.05.009
Equal contribution.
[34] Carlino, A., Schmitt, R. J. P., Clark, A., & Castelletti, A. (2024). Rethinking energy planning to mitigate the impacts of African hydropower. Nature Sustainability, 7, 1013–1024. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-024-01367-x
[33] Tangi, M., Schmitt, R. J. P., Almeida, R., Bossi, S., Flecker, A., Sala, F., & Castelletti, A. (2024). Robust hydropower planning balances energy generation, carbon emissions and sediment connectivity in the Mekong River Basin. Earth’s Future, 12(4), e2023EF003647. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023EF003647
[32] Ding, Z., Angarita, H., Montesinos Cáceres, C. A., Lavado-Casimiro, W., Goldstein, J. A., Batista, N., Wu, T., Baudoin, A., Zheng, H., & Schmitt, R. J. P. (2024). Navigating trade-offs and sustainable development pathways in the Andean water-energy-food-ecosystem nexus. Communications Earth & Environment, 5, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-024-01738-4
[31] Schmitt, R. J. P., Virgüez, E., Ashfaq, S., & Caldeira, K. (2023). Move up or move over: Mapping opportunities for climate adaptation in Pakistan’s Indus plains. Environmental Research Letters, 18(11), 114024. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/acfc59
[30] Schmitt, R. J. P., & Minderhoud, P. S. J. (2023). Data, knowledge, and modeling challenges for science-informed management of river deltas. One Earth, 6(3), 216–235. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2023.02.010
[29] Hatchard, S., Schmitt, R. J. P., Pianosi, F., Savage, J., & Bates, P. (2023). Strategic siting and design of dams minimizes impacts on seasonal floodplain inundation. Environmental Research Letters, 18(9), 094004. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ace122
[28] Tangi, M., Bizzi, S., Schmitt, R. J. P., & Castelletti, A. (2023). Balancing sediment connectivity and energy production via optimized reservoir sediment management strategies. Water Resources Research, 59(6), e2022WR034033. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022WR034033
[27] Langhans, K. E., Echeverri, A., Daws, S. C., Moss, S. N., Anderson, C. B., Chaplin-Kramer, R., Hendershot, J. N., Liu, L., Mandle, L., Nguyen, O., Ou, S. X., Remme, R. P., Schmitt, R. J. P., Vogl, A., & Daily, G. C. (2023). Centering justice in conceptualizing and improving access to urban nature. People and Nature, 5(3), 897–910. https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10470
[26] Opperman, J. J., Carvallo, J. P., Kelman, R., Schmitt, R. J. P., Almeida, R., Chapin, E., Flecker, A., Goichot, M., Grill, G., Harou, J. J., Hartmann, J., Higgins, J., Kammen, D., Martin, E., Martins, T., Newsock, A., Rogéliz, C., Raepple, J., Sada, R., Thieme, M. L., & Harrison, D. (2023). Balancing renewable energy and river resources by moving from individual assessments of hydropower projects to energy system planning. Frontiers in Environmental Science, 10, 1036653. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2022.1036653
[25] Schmitt, R. J. P., Rosa, L., & Daily, G. C. (2022). Global expansion of sustainable irrigation limited by water storage. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 119(47), e2214291119. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2214291119
[24] Kondolf, G. M., Schmitt, R. J. P., Carling, P. A., Goichot, M., Keskinen, M., Arias, M. E., Bizzi, S., Castelletti, A., Cochrane, T. A., Darby, S. E., Kummu, M., Minderhoud, P. S. J., Nguyen, D., Nguyen, H. T., Nguyen, N. T., Oeurng, C., Opperman, J., Rubin, Z., San, D. C., Schmeier, S., & Wild, T. (2022). Save the Mekong Delta from drowning. Science, 376(6593), 583–585. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abm5176
Equal contribution.
[23] Almeida, R. M., Schmitt, R. J. P., Grodsky, S. M., Flecker, A. S., Gomes, C. P., Zhao, L., Liu, H., Barros, N., Kelman, R., & McIntyre, P. B. (2022). Floating solar power could help fight climate change – let’s get it right. Nature, 606(7913), 246–249. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-01398-6
Equal contribution.
[22] Almeida, R. M., Schmitt, R. J. P., Castelletti, A., Flecker, A. S., Harou, J. J., Heilpern, S. A., Kittner, N., Kondolf, G. M., Opperman, J. J., Shi, Q., Gomes, C. P., & McIntyre, P. B. (2022). Strategic planning of hydropower development: Balancing benefits and socio-environmental costs. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 56, 101175. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2022.101175
Equal contribution.
[21] Langhans, K. E., Schmitt, R. J. P., Chaplin-Kramer, R., Anderson, C. B., Vargas Bolaños, C., Vargas Cabezas, F., Remme, R. P., Mandle, L., Ou, S. X., Nguyen, O., Hendershot, J. N., Moss, S. N., Echeverri, A., Anderson, C. B., & Daily, G. C. (2022). Modeling multiple ecosystem services and beneficiaries of riparian reforestation in Costa Rica. Ecosystem Services, 57, 101470. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoser.2022.101470
[20] Serra-Llobet, A., Jähnig, S. C., Geist, J., Kondolf, G. M., Damm, C., Scholz, M., Lund, J., Opperman, J. J., Yarnell, S. M., Pawley, A., Shader, E., Cain, J., Zingraff-Hamed, A., Grantham, T. E., Eisenstein, W., & Schmitt, R. J. P. (2022). Restoring rivers and floodplains for habitat and flood risk reduction: Experiences in multi-benefit floodplain management from California and Germany. Frontiers in Environmental Science, 9, 778568. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2021.778568
[19] Schmitt, R. J. P., Giuliani, M., Bizzi, S., Kondolf, G. M., Daily, G. C., & Castelletti, A. (2021). Strategic basin and delta planning increases the resilience of the Mekong Delta under future uncertainty. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(36), e2026127118. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2026127118
[18] Schmitt, R. J. P., Kittner, N., Kondolf, G. M., & Kammen, D. M. (2021). Joint strategic energy and river basin planning to reduce dam impacts on rivers in Myanmar. Environmental Research Letters, 16(5), 054054. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abe329
[17] Bizzi, S., Tangi, M., Schmitt, R. J. P., Pitlick, J., Piégay, H., & Castelletti, A. (2021). Sediment transport at the network scale and its link to channel morphology in the braided Vjosa River system. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 46(14), 2946–2962. https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.5225
[16] Lallemant, D., Hamel, P., Balbi, M., Lim, T. N., Schmitt, R. J. P., & Win, S. (2021). Nature-based solutions for flood risk reduction: A probabilistic modeling framework. One Earth, 4(9), 1310–1321. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2021.08.012
[15] Li, B., Chen, N., Wang, W., Wang, C., Schmitt, R. J. P., Lin, A., & Daily, G. C. (2021). Eco-environmental impacts of dams in the Yangtze River Basin, China. Science of the Total Environment, 774, 145743. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145743
[14] Opperman, J. J., Orr, S., Baleta, H., Garrick, D., Goichot, M., McCoy, A., Morgan, A., Schmitt, R. J. P., Turley, L., & Vermeulen, A. (2020). Achieving water security’s full goals through better integration of rivers’ diverse and distinct values. Water Security, 10, 100063. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasec.2020.100063
[13] Barbarossa, V., Schmitt, R. J. P., Huijbregts, M. A. J., Zarfl, C., King, H., & Schipper, A. M. (2020). Impacts of current and future large dams on the geographic range connectivity of freshwater fish worldwide. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117(7), 3648–3655. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1912776117
[12] Hamel, P., Valencia, J., Schmitt, R. J. P., Shrestha, M., Piman, T., Sharp, R. P., Francesconi, W., & Guswa, A. J. (2020). Modeling seasonal water yield for landscape management: Applications in Peru and Myanmar. Journal of Environmental Management, 270, 110792. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2020.110792
[11] Schmitt, R. J. P., Bizzi, S., Castelletti, A., Opperman, J. J., & Kondolf, G. M. (2019). Planning dam portfolios for low sediment trapping shows limits for sustainable hydropower in the Mekong. Science Advances, 5(4), eaaw2175. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aaw2175
[10] Schmitt, R. J. P., Kittner, N., Kondolf, G. M., & Kammen, D. M. (2019). Deploy diverse renewables to save tropical rivers. Nature, 569(7756), 330–332. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-01498-8
[9] Grill, G., Lehner, B., Thieme, M., Geenen, B., Tickner, D., Antonelli, F., Babu, S., Borrelli, P., Cheng, L., Crochetiere, H., Filgueiras, R., Goichot, M., Higgins, J., Hogan, Z., Lip, B., McClain, M. E., Meng, J., Mulligan, M., Nilsson, C., Olden, J. D., Opperman, J. J., Petry, P., Liermann, C. R., Sáenz, L., Salinas-Rodríguez, S., Schelle, P., Schmitt, R. J. P., Snider, J., Tan, F., Tockner, K., Valdujo, P. H., van Soesbergen, A., & Zarfl, C. (2019). Mapping the world’s free-flowing rivers. Nature, 569(7755), 215–221. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-019-1111-9
[8] Tangi, M., Schmitt, R. J. P., Bizzi, S., & Castelletti, A. (2019). The CASCADE toolbox for analyzing river sediment connectivity and management. Environmental Modelling & Software, 119, 400–406. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsoft.2019.06.009
[7] Schmitt, R. J. P., Bizzi, S., Castelletti, A., & Kondolf, G. M. (2018). Improved trade-offs of hydropower and sand connectivity by strategic dam planning in the Mekong. Nature Sustainability, 1(2), 96–104. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-018-0022-3
[6] Schmitt, R. J. P., Bizzi, S., Castelletti, A. F., & Kondolf, G. M. (2018). Stochastic modeling of sediment connectivity for reconstructing sand fluxes and origins in the unmonitored Se Kong, Se San, and Sre Pok tributaries of the Mekong River. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface, 123(2), 2–25. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016JF004105
[5] Kondolf, G. M., Schmitt, R. J. P., Carling, P., Darby, S., Arias, M., Bizzi, S., Castelletti, A., Cochrane, T. A., Gibson, S., Kummu, M., Oeurng, C., Rubin, Z., & Wild, T. (2018). Changing sediment budget of the Mekong: Cumulative threats and management strategies for a large river basin. Science of the Total Environment, 625, 114–134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.11.361
[4] Bizzi, S., Demarchi, L., Grabowski, R. C., Weissteiner, C. J., & Van de Bund, W. (2017). The use of remote sensing to characterise hydromorphological properties of European rivers. Aquatic Sciences, 79(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00027-016-0474-5
[3] Schmitt, R. J. P., Bizzi, S., & Castelletti, A. (2017). Tracking multiple sediment sources to stream networks: A graph theory approach. Water Resources Research, 53(9), 7823–7840. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016WR019727
[2] Schmitt, R. J. P., Bizzi, S., & Castelletti, A. (2017). Robust modeling of river network dynamics using graph theory: Hydrological connectivity and optimal monitoring network design. Water Resources Research, 53(9), 7823–7840. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016WR019727
[1] Schmitt, R. J. P., Bizzi, S., & Castelletti, A. (2016). Characterizing the variation of sediment connectivity across multiple scales in the Po River Basin, Italy. Geomorphology, 276, 250–263. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2016.10.020
[1] Schmitt, R. J. P., Bizzi, S., & Castelletti, A. (2014). Characterizing fluvial systems at basin scale by fuzzy signatures of hydromorphological drivers in data-scarce environments. Geomorphology, 214, 69–83. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2014.02.024
