Abstract
Many dams have been constructed or are planned all around China. These dams significantly change the hydrological regime and sand concentration downstream, and subsequently affect the river habitat and riverbed substances. Therefore, a good understanding of the river habitat is urgently required to undertake efficient measures for fish diversity conservation. A multi-objective assessment method based on the Physical Habitat Simulation system (PHABSIM) was utilized to calculate the ecological river flow demand using maximum weighted usable area (WUA) and minimum river discharge as the main objectives. The study employed this method to assess ecological water flow demand in the National Nature Reserve for Rare and Endemic Fish in the Upper Reaches of the Yangtze River in China. Multiple factors such as the degree of endangerment, fish value (ecological value, economic value and scientific research value), data acquisition difficulty, and species representativeness were taken into consideration during selection of indicator fish for coupled habitat analysis. Requirements for both growth and breeding during the study period were considered. Ten species of fishes were chosen as indicator fishes, including floating egg and sinking egg fishes. Additionally, we applied the principle of “minimization of habitat demand and maximization of ecological demand” to include the needs of all indicator fishes. Further, this method comprehensively considered requirements for ecological flow and economic development. The results highlighted that an optimal ecological river flow demand of 2395 m3/s was needed to satisfy the needs for habitat protection and 1890 m3/s was required to meet the needs of social and economic development. The methods used in this study and results obtained, provide a valuable reference for water resources planning and ecosystem protection in other rivers and lakes.
Highlights
The study of ecological flow is important for ecological protection and restoration of natural water regimes
The National Nature Reserve for Rare and Endemic Fish in the Upper Reaches of the Yangtze River is under threat from upstream cascade reservoirs by the dams which have been built or are planned to be built [2]
This study considered the National Nature Reserve for Rare and Endemic Fish in the Upper
Summary
The study of ecological flow is important for ecological protection and restoration of natural water regimes. It plays a critical role in ecological evaluation during construction and operation of dams on rivers [1]. Numerous river flow assessment methods have been proposed in several countries over the past decades [4,5]. These methods have been classified as hydrological [6], hydraulic rating [7], habitat simulation [8], holistic [9], combination, and other methodologies [10]. The methods make different assumptions and differ in the data and methodology used to compute ecological flow requirement [11]
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