Hydropeaking impairs upstream salmonid spawning habitats in a restored Danube tributary

Hydropower is considered an important form of renewable energy, often involving hydropeaking. While the effects of hydropeaking on aquatic communities in areas downstream the dam are well understood, there is a lack of studies investigating potential impacts on tributaries located further upstream. In this study, we tested the effects of hydropeaking operations on upstream tributaries in a restored area of the Danube River, with a focus on the periods of backlog and release of water (up-ramping and down-ramping, respectively) during the filling and release of the reservoir. We used brown trout egg and larval mortality, linked to hydraulic, sedimentary and physiochemical changes in spawning grounds as an indicator. We compared hydropeaking-affected versus non-affected sites in upstream tributaries using HydroEcoSedimentary Tools (HESTs) loaded with clean gravels and brown trout eggs. Egg and larval mortalities were significantly higher in the hydropeaking-affected site with more than 80% egg mortality and almost 100% larval mortality compared to values of 55–63% and 80–85%, respectively, in non-affected sites. Spawning ground quality was significantly altered in the hydropeaking-affected site, where the highest mortalities were observed. Overall, duration of time periods with flow velocities close to zero were a key variable, potentially decreasing oxygen supply for eggs and larvae. Such periods of close to zero flow velocities were driven by backlog periods during the filling of the reservoir, revealing that such events can severely impair ecological integrity of spawning sites in tributaries upstream of dams by slowing the flows in upstream tributaries. Such altered processes can reduce fish population recruitment and need to be considered in future restoration projects.