Forebay entrainment risk effects on two fish species in the Williston Reservoir

Pengcheng Li, Yang Yang, Wenming Zhang, Nan Cong, Ge Yang and Weiwei Yao

Ecological Modelling, 2024, vol. 487, issue C

Abstract: Hydroelectric development and fish entrainment pose significant threats to fish populations, thereby exerting a profound impact on ecosystem functioning within human-affected river systems. This study addresses the potential loss of numerous fish species from the reservoir due to hydraulic diversions. An approach to assess both physical habitat and fish entrainment risk in the Williston Reservoirs was introduced, with a focus on two fish species: bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) and kokanee salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka). The modeled results illuminate a seasonal fluctuation in forebay entrainment risk resulting from the operated intakes. The entrainment risk for kokanee in summer is highest, followed by fall and winter, while spring has the least entrainment risk. Modeled results also suggest that kokanee entrainment risks increase with flow rate of the operated intakes. Due to the fish entrainment risk, kokanee density and population decrease during the reservoir regulation, potentially leading to a reduction in the overall kokanee population over time. Conversely, the entrainment risk for bull trout remains limited, and its density and population appear to be unaffected by reservoir regulation and the subsequent fish entrainment risk. These insights hold relevance for optimizing operations in different seasons, and provide valuable input for informed decision-making aimed at mitigating the risks associated with fish entrainment.

Keywords: Ecohydraulic model; Fish habitat; Fish abundance map; Fish entrainment; Fish stocking strategy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304380023003010
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ecomod:v:487:y:2024:i:c:s0304380023003010

DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2023.110571

Access Statistics for this article

Ecological Modelling is currently edited by Brian D. Fath

More articles in Ecological Modelling from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().