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Synthesis of Common Management Concerns Associated with Dam Removal
Author(s) -
Tullos Desirée D.,
Collins Mathias J.,
Bellmore J. Ryan,
Bountry Jennifer A.,
Connolly Patrick J.,
Shafroth Patrick B.,
Wilcox Andrew C.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
jawra journal of the american water resources association
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.957
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1752-1688
pISSN - 1093-474X
DOI - 10.1111/1752-1688.12450
Subject(s) - context (archaeology) , environmental science , watershed , aggradation , dam removal , disturbance (geology) , environmental resource management , ecosystem , sediment , risk analysis (engineering) , hydrology (agriculture) , ecology , business , fluvial , geography , engineering , computer science , geology , biology , paleontology , archaeology , structural basin , machine learning , geotechnical engineering
Managers make decisions regarding if and how to remove dams in spite of uncertainty surrounding physical and ecological responses, and stakeholders often raise concerns about certain negative effects, regardless of whether these concerns are warranted at a particular site. We used a dam‐removal science database supplemented with other information sources to explore seven frequently raised concerns, herein Common Management Concerns ( CMC s). We investigate the occurrence of these concerns and the contributing biophysical controls. The CMC s addressed are the following: degree and rate of reservoir sediment erosion, excessive channel incision upstream of reservoirs, downstream sediment aggradation, elevated downstream turbidity, drawdown impacts on local water infrastructure, colonization of reservoir sediments by nonnative plants, and expansion of invasive fish. Biophysical controls emerged for some of the concerns, providing managers with information to assess whether a given concern is likely to occur at a site. To fully assess CMC risk, managers should concurrently evaluate site conditions and identify the ecosystem or human uses that will be negatively affected if the biophysical phenomenon producing the CMC occurs. We show how many CMC s have one or more controls in common, facilitating the identification of multiple risks at a site, and demonstrate why CMC risks should be considered in the context of other factors such as natural watershed variability and disturbance history.