Contributions of dry rivers to human well-being: A global review for future research

Abstract Dry rivers (DR) are a non-perennial type of river that flows for only hours or a few days, primarily after heavy rain that often causes flash floods. Unlike intermittent and ephemeral rivers, they are disconnected from groundwater and do not support aquatic life. DR have often been undervalued by some scientific and social groups in terms of nature’s contributions to people (NCP) because of the lack of an integrative perspective to encompass them and their high aridity and low flow. This study aims to provide the state of the art on DR in terms of geographic distribution, NCP, human well-being and drivers of change, and to identify knowledge gaps and the tools to bridge them. To this end, a systematic review of 79 scientific documents (26 case studies, 53 evidence-based works) published between 1995 and 2019 was conducted. Firstly, we analysed the main research trends using publication rates and bibliometric techniques. Secondly, we analysed DR distribution, NCP and drivers of change using mapping techniques, descriptive statistics and bibliographic analysis respectively. We especially identified regulating NCP but to a lesser extent, also material and non-material NCP affected by land use change, climate change, overexploitation, and demographic, political and economic changes. We found relevant gaps on NCP and how they affect the different components of well-being, and the effect of indirect drivers of change on them. Geographical information systems, international scientific collaboration, and basin and transdisciplinary approaches, could accelerate bridging gaps while new research, rehabilitation, management and conservation, and socio-economic opportunities are developed in parallel.