Identifying flood- and food-related limits to fish and wildlife production in the Saskatchewan River delta

确定萨斯喀彻温河三角洲与洪水和粮食相关的鱼类和野生动物生产限制

• 批准号: 445292-2012
• 负责人: Jardine, Timothy
• 金额: $ 3.23万
• 依托单位: University of Saskatchewan
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Collaborative Research and Development Grants
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2015-01-01 至 2016-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=575038
• 关键词: Identifying; flood; food; related; limits

In large river basins, water management agencies are responsible for delivering flows to downstream ecosystems. In many cases, extensive dam-building has led to more stable flows, with decreased incidence and severity of high flow events. However, a growing body of research suggests floods may be ecologically important, leading to questions regarding whether flows should be managed to more closely mimic natural flood regimes. This research aims to extend beyond our current knowledge of benefits of dams in terms of water storage for industrial, municipal and agricultural purposes to assess how dams can be operated in a way to achieve positive environmental outcomes, specifically via controlled floods. This project will examine aquatic productivity and food webs following periodic, experimental inundation from a dam spillway, coupled with parallel observations in a natural, flood-prone river delta to determine the value of wetland connectivity in driving fish and wildlife production. The experimental wetland inundation, conducted at the E.B. Campbell Hydroelectric facility in Nipawin, SK, will serve as a model system to examine the biological response to overbank flows that occur further downstream in the Saskatchewan River delta, a region rich in biological productivity, diversity and human history. It will use natural chemical tracers - stable isotope ratios - to link animals to critical areas for feeding, growth and reproduction, and novel techniques to quantify the growth potential of animals, the quality of their food and the stress they experience. Together, these measurements will enhance our understanding of role of the flood pulse in sustaining fish and wildlife populations in northern rivers, and how the timing and magnitude of water delivery might achieve maximum ecological benefits under scenarios of increasing water scarcity and uncertainty.

在大型河流盆地中，水管理机构负责向下游生态系统运送流量。在许多情况下，广泛的大坝建设导致了更稳定的流动，高流量事件的发病率和严重程度降低。但是，越来越多的研究表明，洪水在生态学上可能很重要，这引发了有关是否应管理流量更紧密地模仿自然洪水制度的问题。这项研究旨在超越我们当前对水坝利益的知识，这些储水用于工业，市政和农业目的，以评估如何以一种实现积极的环境成果，特别是通过受控的洪水来评估大坝。该项目将在周期性的，从大坝溢洪道上进行定期实验性淹没后检查水生生产率和食物网 在易于洪水的河流三角洲进行平行观察，以确定湿地连通性在驾驶鱼类和野生动植物生产中的价值。 在E.B.进行的实验湿地淹没SK Nipawin的Campbell水力发电设施将作为模型系统，以检查对萨斯喀彻温河三角洲（Saskatchewan River Delta）进一步下游的生物学反应，这是一个丰富的生物生产力，多样性和人类历史的地区。它将使用天然化学示踪剂（稳定的同位素比）将动物与饲喂，生长和繁殖的关键区域联系起来，以及新颖的技术，以量化动物的生长潜力，食物的质量以及他们所经历的压力。 总之，这些测量结果将增强我们对洪水在维持北部河流中鱼类和野生动植物种群中的作用的理解，以及在增加水的稀缺性和不确定性的情况下，水的时机和水量如何获得最大的生态益处。