Show simple item record

Hydropeaked rivers need attention

dc.contributor.authorBatalla, Ramon J.
dc.contributor.authorGibbins, Chris N.
dc.contributor.authorAlcázar Montero, Jorge
dc.contributor.authorBrasington, J.
dc.contributor.authorBuendia, C.
dc.contributor.authorGarcia, Celso
dc.contributor.authorLlena Hernando, Manel
dc.contributor.authorLópez Alonso, Raúl
dc.contributor.authorPalau, Antoni
dc.contributor.authorRennie, C. D.
dc.contributor.authorWheaton, J. M.
dc.contributor.authorVericat Querol, Damià
dc.date.accessioned2021-02-22T12:34:10Z
dc.date.available2021-02-22T12:34:10Z
dc.date.issued2021-01-27
dc.identifier.issn1748-9326
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10459.1/70585
dc.description.abstractHydropower is considered a renewable form of energy production, but generating electricity from rivers is not always environmentally benign. The global demand for renewables is increasing rapidly as fossil fuels are gradually phased out, so rivers will continue to be subjected to the pressures imposed by hydropower for decades to come. Finding ways of operating hydropower plants that limit impacts on downstream river ecosystems is therefore a pressing global concern. Usually, these plants cause marked and rapid fluctuations in flow in downstream river reaches, termed 'hydropeaking'. Hydropeaks result in a variety of ecological changes in the dynamic mountain rivers they typically affect; declines in fish and insect populations are evident, especially in reaches immediately downstream from the plant. While these changes are often acute and readily apparent, the underlying causal mechanisms remain unclear. We argue here that riverbed sediments are a critical but neglected causal link between hydropeaking flow regimes and ecological changes. We outline how a variety of tools from different branches of river science can now be brought together to understand precisely why hydropeaking alters sediment dynamics; these tools provide a mechanistic explanation for changes in bed sedimentary conditions and channel form across multiple scales and, consequently, a better understanding of ecological changes. By allowing us to simulate the effects of flow fluctuations on sediment dynamics and channel form, these tools also allow us to develop ways of releasing water from hydropeaking dams that limit impacts on aquatic habitat and species.ca_ES
dc.description.sponsorshipThis work was undertaken and benefited from results and discussions provided in the background of the MorphPeak (Grant No. CGL2016-78874-R) and the MorphHab (Grant No. PID2019-104979RB-I00) projects funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competiveness, Science and Innovation, and the European Regional Development Fund Scheme. Authors acknowledge the support of the Economy and Knowledge Department of the Catalan Government through the Consolidated Research Group 'Fluvial Dynamics Research Group'—RIUS (Grant No. 2017SGR-0459) and the CERCA Program. Damià Vericat is funded through the Serra Húnter Programme (Catalan Government).ca_ES
dc.language.isoengca_ES
dc.publisherIOP Publishingca_ES
dc.relationMINECO/PN2013-2016/CGL2016-78874-Rca_ES
dc.relationMINECO/PN2017-2020/PID2019-104979RB-I00ca_ES
dc.relation.isformatofReproducció del document publicat a: https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abce26ca_ES
dc.relation.ispartofEnvironmental Research Letters, 2021, vol. 16, núm. 2, p. 021001ca_ES
dc.rightscc-by (c) Batalla et al., 2021ca_ES
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.subjectHydropeakingca_ES
dc.subjectHydro-powerca_ES
dc.subjectFluvial ecosystemsca_ES
dc.subjectRiver sedimentsca_ES
dc.subjectRiver habitatca_ES
dc.titleHydropeaked rivers need attentionca_ES
dc.typeinfo:eu-repo/semantics/articleca_ES
dc.identifier.idgrec030800
dc.type.versioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionca_ES
dc.rights.accessRightsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessca_ES
dc.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abce26


Files in this item

Thumbnail
Name:
030800.pdf
Size:
1.664Mb
Format:
PDF
View/Open

This item appears in the following Collection(s)

Show simple item record

cc-by (c) Batalla et al., 2021
Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as cc-by (c) Batalla et al., 2021