Integrated assessment frameworks for evaluating large scale river corridor restoration

Abstract

This report is the third and final report in the Ecological Regeneration Options (ERO) project series. Its purpose is to assist in developing integrated assessment methodologies for evaluating ecological regeneration options in the Avon-Ōtākaro Red Zone (AORZ). This is an important topic to ensure that their potential benefits are recognised alongside those of alternative land uses. This report complements the previous two reports in the ERO series. These provide information on floodplain restoration principles (Orchard, 2017) and an assessment of restoration opportunities in the AORZ using a local knowledge approach (Orchard et al., 2017).The focus of this report is on facilitating robust assessments of the ecological regeneration options presented by the AORZ. A specific objective was to develop an integrated assessment framework to support comparison of those options against each other and against alternative land uses. First, the topics of river corridor evaluation and integrated assessment are briefly introduced and examples of integrated assessment in relevant planning contexts identified. A framework for the integrated assessment of ecological regeneration options is then presented.

Whitebait conservation and protected areas at non-tidal rivermouths: integrating biogeography and environmental controls on īnanga (Galaxias maculatus) spawning grounds

“…This is generally useful from a management perspective by providing a convenient indicator of the most likely elevation range in which spawning will be found, leading to planning approaches based on tidal height as a proxy for the confirmed location of spawning sites (Greer et al 2015). Despite this, multi-month surveys in tidal river systems have also shown that high discharge events can have the effect of raising spawning grounds above normal tidal levels, and this may be associated with appreciable horizontal translation away from the river channel into vulnerable areas such as recreation reserves (Orchard 2019). Consequently, attention to the role of discharge rates in the horizontal and vertical structuring of spawning grounds is important.…”