Asian carp spawning success: Predictions from a 3-D hydrodynamic model for a Laurentian Great Lake tributary

Asian carps are threatening to establish in the Great Lakes basin and the examination of factors leading to spawning success is vital for preventive efforts. Hydrodynamic modelling can determine if successful hatching of carp eggs can occur in a tributary, by predicting egg movement during a spawning event to see if hatching can occur before eggs settle. A 3-D hydrodynamic model, coupled with a Lagrangian particle tracker, was used to assess hatching rates of three Asian carp species (bighead, grass, and silver carps) in different temperature and flow scenarios in the east Don River, a potential spawning tributary to Lake Ontario. In-river hatching rates were highest in scenarios with warmer summer water temperatures (23–25 °C) and flow magnitudes of 15–35 m³/s, which occur at least once every year. Using a 3-D hydrodynamic model allowed the inclusion of low-velocity zones where eggs become trapped in lower flow scenarios, thereby reducing modelled hatching success. In-river hatching rates were significantly reduced when the spawning location was moved close to the mouth of the river, with no modelled hatching if spawning occurred in the lower 8 km of the Don River, indicating that preventing Asian carp movement upstream would viably reduce the chances of successfully spawning occurring in this tributary. The magnitude of reduction in spawning success caused by limiting Asian carp passage upstream can guide preventative strategies and the method of using a 3-D hydrodynamic model as a predictive tool could be applied in similar tributaries across the Great Lakes basin.     

汉江桥闸工程下游河段典型鱼种栖息地模拟研究

探究水利工程干扰下的鱼类生境变化特征是维护河流生态健康的基础性研究。以汉中平川段内汉江三桥桥闸下游10 km为研究河段,利用水文学法和栖息地模拟法计算了生态流量。建立了河段二维水动力学模型,选用宽鳍鱲为目标鱼种,依据其对水深和流速的适宜性曲线确定了流量变化下的生境面积,并采用生境质量分级分析了不同流量响应鱼类生境的变化特征。研究结果表明:两种方法计算出河流生态流量相近,分别为54.3和53.1m~3/s,最终适宜流量为47.8～54.3 m~3/s;在流量8.8～212.7 m~3/s时,相比中等和低质量生境,高质量生境面积随流量的波动更为显著,呈现先升后降的趋势,212.7 m~3/s以上流量的各级生境面积随流量变化较小;高质量生境多分布于两岸和冷水河交汇口,中等质量生境主要分布在河段下游;低质量生境位置相对不固定;研究成果可为桥闸运行和河流鱼类保护提供重要参考依据。     

Multi‐objective risk assessment of freshwater inflow on ecosystem sustainability in San Antonio bay,Texas

Abstract:

San Antonio Bay is located on the coast of Texas between Galveston Bay and Corpus Christi Bay and is the primary bay in the Guadalupe Estuary. Three rivers feed San Antonio Bay from two river basins, including the Blanco and Guadalupe Rivers in the Guadalupe River Basin and the San Antonio River in the San Antonio River Basin. The Canyon Reservoir regulates the flow of fresh water in the middle and lower reaches of the Guadalupe River. These inflows are a primary regulator of salinity and, thus, the productivity of commercially important estuarine species. Increasing demand for water has prompted plans for an increased diversion of 49.3 million m³ (40,000 acre‐feet) from the reservoir. An additional amount of 61.6 million m³ (50,000 acre‐feet) from the mouth of the river is to be pumped back to San Antonio to relieve over‐pumping of the Edwards Aquifer. Because the Guadalupe River Basin contributes 58.1 percent of the freshwater inflow to the estuary, it is not known what the impact of these actions will have on the ecological integrity of the San Antonio Bay. Water resource management in the San Antonio Basin consists of decision making under risk and uncertainty related to randomness in the critical parameters such as the salinity in the bay, biological productivity, and total flow into the bay. The aim of this study is to investigate the trade‐offs between the competing objectives of maximizing biological productivity in the bay and minimizing flow using Stochastic Compromise Programming (SCP). The SCP model solves a multi‐objective function subject to constraints that must be maintained at three different prescribed levels of probability providing a global set of solutions for the water resource management problem under input uncertainty. The SCP model provides information on the trade‐offs among the objective function value, tolerance values of the constraint at the prescribed levels of probability, which could be valuable to policy makers in risk assessment. Solutions were found using three distance functions. Model outputs may suggest the minimum amount of freshwater needed to maximize biological productivity of the bay at specified risk level for assessing the impact of upcoming diversion program. Results indicate that current flows in the Guadalupe River are of sufficient volume to satisfy harvest requirements.     

An analysis of characteristic discharges for the Adaim River (Iraq) in multiyear period

A major River Tigris tributary in Iraq, the Adaim River, has a Mediterranean river flow regime with a total basin area of 12,482 km². The river catchment responds almost immediately to rainfall with apparently minimum storage (i.e. flashy stream). The river daily hydrograph showed a daily peak flow of 1,476 m³/s with substantial seasonal and random variability; the flow duration curve followed the two‐parameter lognormal probability distribution. Gamma and the two‐parameter Weibull probability distributions fitted the monthly mean river discharge for the period 1937–2012 well. Normal and gamma probability distributions were found to appropriately describe the distribution of the annual mean river discharge for the same period. Gumbel extreme value, Log Pearson type III, and the two‐parameter lognormal distributions gave a reasonable fit to the annual maximum discharge record for the river. A regression formula was used to fit the annual minimum discharge record, which has a significant number of zero values. There was a positive and significant correlation (r = 0.77) between the annual mean discharge at the measuring site and seasonal rainfall measured at Karkuk meteorological station located in the north central part of the basin. The rainfall record at Karkuk showed a significant decline in seasonal rainfall after 1993.     

漳卫新河河口最小生态需水量研究

由于水资源过度开发利用,海河流域诸多河口入海径流量大幅减小,导致河口生态严重退化.选择盐度为河口栖息地关键环境因子,利用河口潮流和盐度数学模型模拟栖息地盐度与入海径流量的关系,以20世纪70年代塘沽海洋站年平均最大盐度值为控制标准,计算得到该标准下的河口最小生态需水量.结果表明,漳卫新河河口年最小生态需水量为3.19亿m3.20世纪80年代以来,漳卫新河河口多年平均入海径流量为1.55亿m3,约84%年份无法保证河口最小生态需水量.计算结果可为流域生态调度和河口生态系统修复提供参考.     

Quantitative Estimation Models and Their Application of Ecological Water Use at a Basin Scale

Ecological water use (EWU) is urgent in need in the lower reaches of Tarim River in China. Estimation of water amount for EWU is depending on some parameters and modeling. EWU is mainly consists of two parts in no runoff area in the basin, i.e. total water amount for restoration groundwater table and total stand water amount of the all river courses. The former is including water amount for restoration of groundwater table, lateral discharge and evaporation of water surface. The estimated values are 8.18 × 10⁸ m³, 0.68 × 10⁸ m³/a and 0.132 × 10⁸ m³/a respectively. Based on the groundwater depth rising 4.0 meters requiring 5 years, the total water amount for restoration groundwater table is 2.448 × 10⁸ m³/a. The latter, i.e., total stand water amount is 1.992 × 10⁸ m³/a. However, the development of water management measures could alleviate the issue and lead to sustainable EWU in the lower reaches of Tarim River.     

Merging anchovy eggs abundance into a hydrodynamic model as an assessment tool for estuarine ecohydrological management

The impoundment of rivers by large dams is the biggest direct anthropogenic impact on the hydrological cycle. However, dams can help solving eutrophication in estuaries by controlling flow pulses, which in turn might enhance the advection of fish larval stages from their spawning and nursery areas. Thus, this work aimed to merge data on the abundance of anchovy eggs with MOHID hydrodynamic model for the Guadiana estuary, allowing dam/basin managers to set river discharge scenarios that might mitigate/prevent eutrophication, without compromising the presence of fish larval stages inside the estuary. Data on anchovy larval stages were assessed in the Guadiana estuary and adjacent coast and three simulation setups were developed. In Simulation A, anchovy eggs abundance was merged in the hydrodynamic model to compare the outputs with data on the abundance, distribution and development stage of anchovy eggs and larvae. In Simulation B, lagrangian particles were incorporated in the model to determine the percentage of particles released from the upper, middle and lower estuary that remain in the estuary along 10 days, in two tidal situations and in seven river discharge scenarios. In Simulation C, the abundance of anchovy eggs was merged in the model to select the discharge scenario(s) that do not compromise the presence of anchovy larval stages in the estuary. Results confirmed the spawning and nursery areas of anchovy and showed that scenarios B (Q_max = 20 m³ s^?1) and C (Q_max = 50 m³ s^?1) should be applied during neap tides. The choice between scenarios depends on the degree of eutrophication, the effectiveness of an inexistent monitoring program and on plankton response experiments to flushing and increased nutrient loading. This work produced an easy‐to‐use management tool for Guadiana managers, serving as an example to other estuarine sites around the world. Ultimately, this work suggests that river flow management must be guided by robust ecological studies, under an adequate sociological framework and adopting sustainable economic principles to maintain and improve the ecosystem services. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

三峡库区梅溪河河口干支流界面水流特征

通过对三峡库区中部典型支流梅溪河库湾水动力参数及水体温度、浊度数据进行分析,研究水库运行各时期梅溪河河口干支流界面水流特性,探讨其影响因素以及水交换对库湾的影响。结果表明:梅溪河河口双向水流特征明显,在温差异重流、干流惯性作用以及库区水位变动等因素影响下,干支流界面水流强度、进出水体间界面结构及形态在不同运行期有显著差异;由于双向水流结构的存在,尽管梅溪河河口干支流界面净流量较小(多小于100 m~3/s),但是干支流水体的交换量相对显著,介于314.17~535.26 m~3/s之间,可达净流量的4~40倍;在净流量最小的低水位运行期,干流倒灌水体基本能到达支流库湾常年回水区的末端。     

Managing freshwater inflow to the San Francisco Bay Estuary

The watershed of California's Central Valley drains into San Francisco Bay, the largest estuary on the Pacific Coast. The water resources of the Valley have been intensively exploited, particularly in the last 50 years, with the construction of large-scale irrigation systems. About half the 35 km³ average annual freshwater inflow to the estuary is now diverted, with up to 85 per cent in dry years. These diversions are now having significant adverse effects on the estuarine ecosystem including substantial declines in the economically significant anadromous fishery. At the time the large dam projects in the watershed were designed, no consideration was given to impacts on the estuary. Growing recognition of this error has led the California state agency that governs water allocation to consider applying operating conditions on the upstream reservoirs in order to provide sufficient freshwater inflows in the estuary to maintain the estuarine ecosystem. A set of freshwater flow and salinity standards has been proposed and is described in this paper. These flow requirements are based on extensive research on the role of freshwater inflow on estuarine hydrodynamics and on the estuarine ecosystem. These requirements have three overlapping goals:.

• 1 Maximizing phytoplankton production - the base of the estuarine foodchain.
• 2 Protecting spawning and migration of anadromous fishery.
• 1 Protecting brackish wetlands.

.     

多目标协控下伊洛河自净需水流量研究

建立基于河道边界条件水动力学与水质相耦合模型,结合伊洛河生态系统特点及功能性需水组成,以河流水功能区水质目标作为协控因子,进一步考虑伊洛河河口黄河鲤繁殖期对水质的要求进行自净需水流量计算。结果表明,伊洛河在现状排污与控制排污条件下,黑石关断面达到水功能区水质目标Ⅳ类的自净需水流量分别为14.00 m~3/s和8.00 m~3/s;满足4—6月基本维持鱼类正常繁育水质要求的自净需水流量为13.62 m~3/s,维持鱼类良好繁育状态下水质要求的自净需水流量为35.80 m~3/s     

Geomorphic response to river flow regulation: Case studies and time-scales

River regulation imposes primary changes on flow and sediment transfer, the principal factors governing the alluvial channel regime. In this study, the effect of flow regulation is isolated from sediment delivery. Peace River (Q? = 1080m³s^?1, increasing to 2110m³s^?1 downstream) was regulated in 1967 for hydropower. The gravel-bed reach immediately downstream from the dam has become stable. Gravel accumulates at major tributary junctions, so the river profile is becoming stepped. Further downstream, the river has a sand bed. It can still transport sand, so morphological changes along the channel include both aggradation and channel narrowing by lateral accretation. In the gravel-bed Kemano River (Q? = 150m³s^?1), the addition of water by diversion from another river caused degradation when additional bed material was entrained below the inflow point. However, the effect became evident only after many years, when a competent flood occurred. The short-term response was channel widening. The time-scale for the response depends on the size of the river and the nature and severity of regulation. In both rivers, significant adjustment will require centuries and will intimately involve the riparian forest.     

Spring micro-distribution of macroinvertebrate in relation to hydro-environmental factors in the Lijiang River,China

The study investigated the reference state of the macroinvertebrates and their relation to hydro-environmental factors for the Lijiang River, which can be served to assess the impact of flow regulations on the river ecosystem. Samples of water, sediment and benthos were taken from three reaches located in the upstream, middle stream and downstream respectively during March–April 2010. Parameters characterizing flow, chemical and biological conditions were analyzed for each sample. In total, 31 species of 6 classes were identified, including Insecta (13 species), Gastropoda (8 species), Lamellibranchiata (3 species), Crustacea (3 species), Oligochaeta (2 species) and Hirudinea (2 species). The density ranged from 20 ind./m² to 3780 ind./m² with an average of 750 ind./m². The macrofauna composition was Gastropoda (48.0%), Insecta (23.9%), Lamellibranchia (14.9%) and the others (13.2%). The biomass ranged from 0.9 g/m² to 1001.6 g/m² with an average of 150.8 g/m². The macrofauna composition was Gastropoda (70.5%), Lamellibranchia (24.7%) and the others (4.8%). Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) revealed that species distributions were mainly governed by flow velocity, conductivity, chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total nitrogen.     

Ecosystem‐based environmental flow assessment in a Greek regulated river with the use of 2D hydrodynamic habitat modelling

Despite the long‐term research on the use of hydraulic‐hydrodynamic habitat models (HHMs) for predicting the response of aquatic biota to habitat alteration, their practical application in model‐based environmental flow assessments (EFAs) has been limited due to reasons mainly associated with cost‐effectiveness, time‐efficiency, required expertise, and availability of hydroecological information. In this study, we demonstrate a cost‐effective and time‐efficient application of a benthic‐invertebrate, two‐dimensional, fuzzy rule‐based EFA in a 277‐m long reach in the downstream route of a regulated river in western Greece. Apart from developing ecosystem‐based environmental flow (eflow) scenarios, we highlight the valuable features of HHMs, comment on their disadvantages, and propose working solutions to overcome them. The results of the study show that the hydrology‐based eflow of 0.2 m³/s, initially proposed by the managing authorities, is not sufficient to ensure the long‐term functionality of the downstream benthic communities, as the ecosystem‐based eflow ranged between 0.6 and 2 m³/s. As social resilience relies heavily on ecological resilience, ecosystem‐based approaches can ensure the sustainability of aquatic ecosystems. This study demonstrates, inter alia, that HHMs‐based EFAs can be implemented cost‐effectively and time‐efficiently to serve as an accurate scientific basis for water managers and stakeholders, in search of the fine balance between anthropogenic water demand and long‐term ecosystem integrity and functionality.     

River regulation and riparian woodlands: Cottonwood conservation with an environmental flow regime along the Waterton River,Alberta

Following water withdrawal, riparian cottonwoods have declined downstream from some dams in western North America. Analyses of aerial photographs and field observations in the 1980s suggested that the black and narrowleaf cottonwoods (Populus trichocarpa and Populus angustifolia) along the Waterton River, Alberta, were declining due to drought stress following the 1964 damming and diversion. This raised concern for the riverine ecosystems and in 1991, “functional flows” commenced with 2 changes: (a) the minimum flow was increased from 0.9 to 2.3 m³/s (mean discharge 21.9 m³/s) and (b) flow ramping provided gradual stage recession after the spring peak. This provided an environmental flow regime that was delivered for 2 decades and this study investigated the consequent river flow patterns and riparian woodlands upstream and downstream from the Waterton Dam. Analyses of aerial photographs from 1951 to 2009 assessed 4 flow management intervals: (a) the free‐flowing predam condition, (b) the initial dammed interval to the mid‐1970s, (c) a drought interval in the 1980s, and (d) with the environmental flow regime after 1991. Analyses revealed woodland reduction from 1961 to 1985 due to losses through bank erosion with major floods and apparent decline due to low flows following a regional drought and water withdrawal for irrigation. With the subsequent environmental flow regime, there was apparent woodland recovery, despite drought in 2000 and 2001. This study demonstrated that the correspondence between river flow patterns and the extent of riparian woodlands and the benefit from the environmental flow regime that probably reduced drought stress and mortality.     

A Stream Water Availability Model of Upper Indus Basin Based on a Topologic Model and Global Climatic Datasets

Integrated water resources management at river basin scales and evaluation of effects of climate change on regional water resources require quantitative estimates of space-time variability of monthly discharges within a river network. This study demonstrates that such estimates, which can be called stream water availability, for regional river basins with meager or nonexistent gauge data, can be obtained by combining continuity models of hydrological processes, flow routing, and topology of the river basin. The hydrologic processes can be adequately modeled using high quality databases of hydrologic significance. A stream water availability model is presented for Upper Indus Basin (UIB) utilizing the most up-to-date datasets for topography, temperature, precipitation, net radiation, land cover, soil type, and digital atlas. Multiple datasets have been evaluated and the ones with best accuracy and temporal coverage have been selected for the final model. Upper Indus River and its major tributaries are highly significant in regional water resources management and geopolitics. However, UIB is a poorly studied and largely ungauged river basin with an area of 265,598 km² and extremely rugged topography. Several factors, the chief ones being the challenging terrain and the trans-boundary nature of the basin, have contributed to this knowledge gap. Hydro-climatologically it is a complex basin with a significant cryospheric component. The spatial and temporal variation of the principal climatic variables, namely precipitation, net radiation, and temperature has been thoroughly accounted for in the development of a stream water availability model based on a process model coupled with a topologic model and a linear reservoir model of river flow routing. Model calculations indicate that there are essentially two hydrologic regimes in UIB. The regime that is truly significant in contributing stream flows, originates from the UIB cryosphere containing outstanding glaciers and snowfields. The other regime, generated from wet precipitation and melt water from seasonal snow covers is insignificant due to high rates of infiltration and evaporation in the semi-desert environment prevailing at elevations below perennial snow and ice covers. In general, the modeled stream flow characteristics match with the sparse discharge measurements that are available. Flow in the Indus considerably increases at its confluence with Shyok River and further downstream where other tributaries form the north join the main stem. At or near the outlet of the basin stream flow can vary from less than 800 m³ s^− 1 in the winter and spring to nearly 8,000 m³ s^− 1 in the peak summer and can persist to over 1,500 m³ s^− 1 in the autumn. The importance of snow and glacial melt in Indus River discharge is apparent and any global or regional climate change affecting the equilibrium line elevation of the snow fields in the Karakoram will have a profound influence on the water availability in the Indus. Estimates are made for per capita water availability in Ladakh and Gilgit-Baltistan territories, controlled by India and Pakistan respectively. Geopolitical significance and climate change effects are discussed briefly.     

黄河河口区生态需水量及流量过程核算

以保障黄河河口区三角洲湿地生态需水、河口及近海鱼类需水及河道泥沙输送为目标,针对不同需水目标的特点,基于生境模拟模型、函数型线性回归模型等方法,分别计算入海径流过程对三角洲湿地及河口区生物群落生境及生物量的影响,以及来沙系数对河道输沙的影响,遵循消耗性需水的加和性原则与非消耗性需水的最大性原则,提出满足三角洲湿地生态需...     

基于黄河鲤栖息地水文-生态响应关系的黄河下游生态流量研究

本研究采用野外生物监测、栖息地同步观测和实验室控制实验等技术手段,应用生物学、鱼类生态学、生态水力学、水文学等多学科理论,基于河流栖息地模拟法,研究了黄河下游指示物种黄河鲤生态学特性及其栖息生境与流速、水深、水温等水文水环境因子之间的关系,将径流条件与目标物种不同生长阶段生物学信息相结合,建立了代表物种繁殖期、越冬期栖息地适宜度指数,构建了黄河下游重点河段河流栖息地模型,建立了指示物种栖息地状况与河川径流条件定量响应关系,提出黄河下游花园口和利津断面繁殖期最小生态流量为300 m³/s和100 m³/s、适宜生态流量为600~700 m³/s和190~250 m³/s。该研究在水生生物习性及其与河川径流响应关系方面实现突破,解决了黄河生态需水研究中关键技术问题。     

Critical Environmental Flows to Support Integrated Ecological Objectives for the Yellow River Estuary,China

The volume of inflowing water needed to meet multiple demands in the Yellow River Estuary of China was examined and quantified. Pressure on available environmental flows comes from varied ecological objectives, including maintenance of freshwater habitat for hundreds of plant and animal species, salinity balance, sediment transport and general equilibrium of the hydrologic cycle. Temporal fluctuations of flow input and output were considered and the amount of water needed for both consumptive and non-consumptive uses was evaluated. The rule of summation was used to calculate consumptive water requirements and the rule of compatibility (i.e., maximum principle) was adapted to estimate the non-consumptive ones. It was determined that the minimum, medium and high levels of annual environmental flows are 134.22 × 10⁸, 162.73 × 10⁸ and 274.9 × 10⁸ m³, respectively, in the Yellow River Estuary, which represent 23.7, 28.7 and 48.5% of the natural river discharge. Water requirements differ across months. The months of May through June, August and October were identified as the most critical periods for maintaining the environmental flows. The basic purpose of water entering the system is to compensate for water losses due to evaporation and to maintain an acceptable level of salinity in the estuary. Sediment transport into and through the estuary area are likely to be directly impacted by variations in river discharge. Improved efficiency in the sediment transport regime of the Yellow River could potentially reduce environmental flow requirements of the estuary, thus freeing water resources for other beneficial uses.     

Short‐term effects in a reduced flow stretch: The case of the Antas River in South Brazil

The building of adduction channels (penstocks) that conduct water from reservoirs to turbines, which are located kilometres from the dam, is becoming common, optimizing the electricity generation in small dams. This design creates a river stretch with reduced discharge between the dam and the powerhouse. This study evaluates the short‐term impacts of the below‐dam decrease in river flow on fish assemblages. Samples were collected in the reduced flow stretch of the Castro Alves Hydropower Plant (Antas River, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil) before the reservoir started operating (January 2008; mean discharge of 103.7 m³/s) and immediately after operation began (March 2008; mean discharge of 12.4 m³/s). Sampling was conducted in distinct habitats of the reduced flow stretch (slow waters—gillnets, sand beaches—seining nets, structured littoral—electrofishing, and fast waters—cast nets) with a strongly standardized effort. The attributes of the fish assemblages were not negatively affected by the flow reduction in any habitat sampled. However, distinct changes in the spatial structure were observed considering the different types of habitat predominantly used by the species, which represents an entire reorganization of the fish assemblages in the short term. It is fundamental that these short‐term aspects be considered in the licensing of hydropower plants in addition to the long‐term changes.     

Sediment in Mosul Dam reservoir using the HEC‐RAS model

Mosul Dam, located on the Tigris River north of Iraq, is experiencing sedimentation problems, especially near the Al‐Jazeera pumping station that supplies the irrigation water for the Al‐Jazeera project. The sources of the sediment accumulated within the reservoir are from the Tigris River, as well as ten side valleys on both sides of the reservoir. The sediment inflow rate into the reservoir and the released values are considered on the basis of the operation schedule of the dam for the considered period from 1986 to 2011. The sediment loads were estimated on the basis of available measurements and estimated literature values. The HEC‐RAS 4.1 model was used for flows and sediments in the main river and reservoir. The model was calibrated for flow simulations (coefficient of determination r² = 0.87) and sediment routing based on bed level, (with resultant r² = 0.98 and Mean Absolute Deviation of 0.95). The Ackers–White equation was used in the HEC‐RAS model for sediment routing because of the wide range of sediment sizes in the study case. The resultant total accumulated sediment load volume was 1.13 km³, a value that is very close to the measured values (1.143 km³) obtained from a previous bathymetric survey. Furthermore, the model indicated most of the sediment (80.7%) was deposited during the first five of the dam operation.