Research Document - 2016/047
Key physical and chemical drivers of fisheries productivity (flow, nutrient and thermal regimes) across rivers in various Canadian regions: lessons learned from NSERC’s HydroNet 2010-2015
By Michel Lapointe, Joseph B. Rasmussen, Maheu, A., Kwak, J.A., Beaupré, L. and, St-Hilaire, A.
Abstract
This report summarizes findings of general interest under the physical habitat research theme of NSERC-HydroNet (2010-2015). The report addresses 3 key, physico-chemical determinants of fish habitat productivity below hydro dams: the degree of alteration of the natural flow regime (Section A of this report); the river’s nutrient regime (Section B) and the alteration of its thermal regime (Section C). Each of the three self-contained sections briefly reviews key literature and then identifies the specific objectives of HydroNet work on the particular set of determinants of habitat productivity that it addresses. Then each section describes some low cost multi-site field sampling and statistical modelling approaches that were used to efficiently monitor the effects of regulation, in turn, on a particular river system’s flow regime, nutrient regime and thermal regime. Following this, each section presents significant patterns that emerged from comparatively analyzing aspects of the large data sets collected under HydroNet, covering a wide range of regulated and reference river systems across Canada. In particular, some specific effects of Run of the River, Peaking and Storage type hydro systems on both flow and thermal regimes are illustrated. Finally, the analysis demonstrates the important roles played by variations in riverine nutrient levels and species richness in determining total fish biomass, a useful index of habitat productivity in each system.
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