Size-dependent effects of dams on river ecosystems and implications for dam removal outcomes

IF 4.3 2区 环境科学与生态学 Q1 ECOLOGY
Rebecca L. Brown, Don Charles, Richard J. Horwitz, James E. Pizzuto, Katherine Skalak, David J. Velinsky, David D. Hart
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Abstract

Understanding the relationship between a dam's size and its ecological effects is important for prioritization of river restoration efforts based on dam removal. Although much is known about the effects of large storage dams, this information may not be applicable to small dams, which represent the vast majority of dams being considered for removal. To better understand how dam effects vary with size, we conducted a multidisciplinary study of the downstream effect of dams on a range of ecological characteristics including geomorphology, water chemistry, periphyton, riparian vegetation, benthic macroinvertebrates, and fish. We related dam size variables to the downstream–upstream fractional difference in measured ecological characteristics for 16 dams in the mid-Atlantic region ranging from 0.9 to 57 m high, with hydraulic residence times (HRTs) ranging from 30 min to 1.5 years. For a range of physical attributes, larger dams had larger effects. For example, the water surface width below dams was greater below large dams. By contrast, there was no effect of dam size on sediment grain size, though the fraction of fine-grained bed material was lower below dams independently of dam size. Larger dams tended to reduce water quality more, with decreased downstream dissolved oxygen and increased temperature. Larger dams decreased inorganic nutrients (N, P, Si), but increased particulate nutrients (N, P) in downstream reaches. Aquatic organisms tended to have greater dissimilarity in species composition below larger dams (for fish and periphyton), lower taxonomic diversity (for macroinvertebrates), and greater pollution tolerance (for periphyton and macroinvertebrates). Plants responded differently below large and small dams, with fewer invasive species below large dams, but more below small dams. Overall, these results demonstrate that larger dams have much greater impact on the ecosystem components we measured, and hence their removal has the greatest potential for restoring river ecosystems.

Abstract Image

水坝大小对河流生态系统的影响以及对水坝拆除结果的影响。
了解水坝的大小与其生态影响之间的关系,对于在拆除水坝的基础上确定河流恢复工作的优先次序非常重要。尽管人们对大型蓄水坝的影响有很多了解,但这些信息可能并不适用于小型水坝,而小型水坝占正在考虑拆除的水坝的绝大多数。为了更好地了解大坝的影响如何随着规模的变化而变化,我们对大坝对一系列生态特征的下游影响进行了多学科研究,包括地貌、水化学、浮游植物、河岸植被、底栖大型无脊椎动物和鱼类。我们将大西洋中部地区 16 座大坝的大小变量与下游-上游测量生态特征的分数差异联系起来,这些大坝的高度从 0.9 米到 57 米不等,水力停留时间 (HRT) 从 30 分钟到 1.5 年不等。就一系列物理属性而言,大坝的影响更大。例如,大坝下的水面宽度更大。相比之下,大坝的大小对沉积物粒度没有影响,尽管大坝下方细粒河床物质的比例较低,与大坝的大小无关。大坝往往更容易降低水质,使下游溶解氧减少,温度升高。大坝减少了下游河段的无机营养物质(氮、磷、硅),但增加了颗粒营养物质(氮、磷)。大坝下的水生生物物种组成差异较大(鱼类和浮游生物),分类多样性较低(大型无脊椎动物),耐污染性较强(浮游生物和大型无脊椎动物)。大坝和小坝下的植物反应不同,大坝下的入侵物种较少,而小坝下的入侵物种较多。总之,这些结果表明,大坝对我们测量的生态系统组成部分的影响要大得多,因此拆除大坝对恢复河流生态系统具有最大的潜力。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
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来源期刊
Ecological Applications
Ecological Applications 环境科学-环境科学
CiteScore
9.50
自引率
2.00%
发文量
268
审稿时长
6 months
期刊介绍: The pages of Ecological Applications are open to research and discussion papers that integrate ecological science and concepts with their application and implications. Of special interest are papers that develop the basic scientific principles on which environmental decision-making should rest, and those that discuss the application of ecological concepts to environmental problem solving, policy, and management. Papers that deal explicitly with policy matters are welcome. Interdisciplinary approaches are encouraged, as are short communications on emerging environmental challenges.
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