The changing hydrology of a dammed Amazon

Timpe, Kelsie; Kaplan, D. A.

doi:10.1126/sciadv.1700611

Cited by 213 publications

(174 citation statements)

References 102 publications

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“…Despite being considered beneficial, by providing a clean and renewable source of energy, hydroelectric dams provoke major impacts on the hydrological cycle (Timpe & Kaplan, ), causing longitudinal disturbances throughout the course of the river, as predicted by the Ward and Stanford () serial discontinuity concept. One of the most obvious effects of river damming on the hydrological cycle is the modification of the patterns of river discharge and fluviometry (Junk & Mello, ; Winemiller et al., ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The decline of fisheries on the Madeira River, Brazil: The high cost of the hydroelectric dams in the Amazon Basin

Santos

Pinto‐Coelho

Fonseca

et al. 2018

Fisheries Management Eco

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Despite being considered beneficial by providing a clean and renewable source of energy, the construction of hydroelectric dams has extremely negative implications for Amazonian fisheries. This study investigated the impacts of the Santo Antônio and Jirau hydroelectric dams on the fishery stocks of the Madeira River. This investigation was based on fish catch data from the Z‐31 fishing colony, located in the municipality of Humaitá, in Amazonas State, Northern Brazil. Data were collected daily and provided information on the date of return from each trip, the fish species targeted, and the total catch (kg) between January 2002 and September 2017. The results indicated reductions of 39% in the mean annual catch and 34% in the mean monthly catches. These results highlight the high price paid by local fish communities for the development of hydroelectric power in the Amazon basin.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The decline of fisheries on the Madeira River, Brazil: The high cost of the hydroelectric dams in the Amazon Basin

Santos

Pinto‐Coelho

Fonseca

et al. 2018

Fisheries Management Eco

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Section: Application Of the Revised Methods To The Eloha Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These results suggest that the alteration of hydrological year types in this area will significantly affect aquatic habitats and plant community distributions. Furthermore, some indicators in groups 1 and 2 have strong correlations with aquatic habitat or plant community distribution [53][54][55]. Based on the analysis of the preliminary flow-ecology relationships in each group (Table 1), the following recommendations can be made for the implementation of the ELOHA framework in the Jinsha River: (1) Generate plant species statistics in the region and identify plant species with high water dependence; then, develop appropriate conservation strategies to ensure the healthy development of such plants.…”

Section: Application Of the Revised Methods To The Eloha Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Quantitative Assessment of Flow Regime Alteration Using a Revised Range of Variability Methods

Peng

Huang

et al. 2018

Water

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Abstract:The Ecological Limits of Hydrologic Alteration (ELOHA) framework, which can be used to determine and implement environmental flows at regional scales, requires accurate flow regime alteration assessment. The widely used range of variability approach (RVA) evaluates flow regime alteration by comparing the distribution of 32 Indicators of Hydrologic Alteration (IHA). However, the traditional RVA method is not comprehensive, because it neglects both the human-induced inner characteristics of one hydrological year (ICOHY) and the positional information of 32 IHA, which are the main factors behind ecosystem alteration. To address these limitations, we propose a revised RVA method that uses the Tanimoto similarity (TS) coefficient to reflect the ICOHY and a first-order connectivity index to reflect the IHA positional information. The yearly Tanimoto alteration (TA) index is measured using the revised RVA method, and the individual alteration (IA) values of each of 32 IHA are calculated using the traditional RVA method. Then, a new index, the overall degree of flow regime alteration (OA), is derived from the TA and IA values. The effectiveness of the revised RVA method is tested in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, and the results suggest that the revised RVA ameliorates the limitations of the traditional RVA, and therefore, is preferable for use in the ELOHA framework.

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“…Another run‐of‐river dam (Santo Antônio Hydroelectric Power Plant), approximately 100 km downstream of the one studied here, is already in place, and others are planned (Fearnside, ). Few long‐term studies have evaluated the cascading effects of multiple dams on zooplankton communities (Timpe & Kaplan, ), most examined effects on fish communities (Cumming, ; Loures & Pompeu, ; Oliveira, Baumgartner, Gomes, Dias, & Agostinho, ). Even less is known about cumulative effects of run‐of‐river dams over multiple years.…”

Section: Conclusion and Recommendations For Monitoring Programmes In mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This should particularly affect environments with a naturally marked variation in flow regime such as floodplains (Bunn & Arthington, ). The damming of floodplains disrupts hydrological dynamics, changing the magnitude, frequency, duration, time, and rate of flows with potential effects on the dynamics, structure, and functioning of the entire ecosystem (Braghin et al., ; Castello & Macedo, ; Poff et al., ; Timpe & Kaplan, ). Thus, the relative importance of disturbance and the ecosystem processes altered by damming may vary over time (Bortolini, Pineda, Rodrigues, Jati, & Velho, ), especially where a strong flood pulse is present (Simões et al., ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Damming interacts with the flood pulse to alter zooplankton communities in an Amazonian river

et al. 2019

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Flow modification of lotic ecosystems is one of the main threats to global freshwater biodiversity. Commonly, and in the river studied here, modification results from hydroelectric dam installation. We evaluated the impacts of damming on zooplankton communities in the Amazonian floodplain of the Madeira River (Porto Velho, Rondônia, Brazil) following construction in 2012 of the run‐of‐river dam of Jirau Hydroelectric Power Plant. Using data sampled between 2009 and 2015, we tested for discontinuities in zooplankton community composition attributable to damming and the naturally occurring flood pulse. The flood pulse remained the main predictor explaining variation in zooplankton community structure even with the installation of the dam on the Madeira River. Despite this, discontinuities for the entire zooplankton community and for the main compositional groups (testate amoebae, rotifers, cladocerans, and copepods) were detected in relation to the dam (pre‐/post‐dam periods), mainly in ebb and low water, and with weaker evidence of dam effects during flood and highwater hydrological periods. A multivariate regression tree explained 9.6% of the variation in zooplankton communities and identified four groups: (1) flood and high‐water periods; (2) low water post‐dam; (3) low water pre‐dam; and (4) ebb hydrological periods. The deviance in each multivariate regression tree node was attributable to variation in eight rotifer, three testate amoeba, and three copepod taxa. Our study demonstrates that the flood pulse, dam construction, and interaction between both of these factors affect zooplankton community structure in the Madeira River. While for many zooplankton community variables, effects occurred mainly during ebb and low‐water periods, some effects were also observed during high water and flood periods. We thus recommend the establishment of a permanent environmental monitoring programme during all hydrological periods in tropical floodplain rivers and the addition of sampling sites downstream from dams. Many rivers in the world are increasingly disrupted by multiple dams, yet little is known of their effects, especially for run‐of‐river dams. Our study identified short‐term impacts of only one run‐of‐river dam on zooplankton communities. More research is needed on the effects of multiple run‐of‐river dams on zooplankton and other biota, especially in tropical floodplain rivers, so that negative effects can be understood and ameliorated.

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The changing hydrology of a dammed Amazon

Abstract: We characterized the type and magnitude of hydrological changes brought about by existing dams across the Brazilian Legal Amazon.

Cited by 213 publications

References 102 publications

The decline of fisheries on the Madeira River, Brazil: The high cost of the hydroelectric dams in the Amazon Basin

The decline of fisheries on the Madeira River, Brazil: The high cost of the hydroelectric dams in the Amazon Basin

Quantitative Assessment of Flow Regime Alteration Using a Revised Range of Variability Methods

Damming interacts with the flood pulse to alter zooplankton communities in an Amazonian river

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