The Determination of Freshwater Inflow Rules for Tidal River Estuaries Using a Percent-Of-Flow Approach (F.S
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The determination of freshwater inflow rules for tidal river estuaries using a percent-of-flow approach (F.S. 373.042) Minimum flows are “the limit at which further withdrawals would be significantly harmful to the water resources or ecology of the area” Translated How much water can be removed for water supply without damaging the ecology of a river or its receiving estuary Percentage of yearly rainfall and streamflow by month 24 24 Rainfall 21 21 Streamflow 18 18 15 15 12 12 9 9 Rainfall (%) Rainfall 6 6 Streamflow (%) 3 3 0 0 Jul Oct Jan Feb Apr Jun Dec Mar May Aug Nov Month Sept Freshwater and Estuarine Minimum Flow Studies Fresh Water Estuarine • Fish Passage • Fish and invertebrate • Floodplain Inundation distribution & abundance • Wetted Perimeter • Salinity zone modeling • Woody Snags • Benthic invertebrates • Fish / Invertebrate • Oyster zones habitat modeling • Manatee Use • Tidal Wetlands • Water Quality (DO) • Phytoplankton Significantly Harmful ? 3500 Man_nobrk.grf 3000 Response Continuum 2500 e c r u o s 2000 e R l a ? c i g 1500 o l o i B 1000 500 0 0 10 20 30 40 50 Percent Reduction in Flow Flow prescription for freshwater river Peace River at Arcadia 2000 8% 1600 1200 13% 800 Flow (cfs) Flow 18% 10% 400 LFT = 67 cfs 0 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 The determination of freshwater inflow rules for tidal River estuaries using a percent-of-flow approach Subtitled Assessing Shifts in Fish Nursery Zones to Determine Allowable Reductions of Freshwater Inflow Value of Estuarine Dependent Fisheries In Florida Commercial fisheries Dockside value • Shrimp $37,224,699 • Blue Crabs $10,394,829 • Mullet $ 6,915,987 • Oysters $ 5,474,876 Sport Fisheries Economic value • Snook • Tarpon Saltwater sport fishing • Red Drum 5 to 6 billion $ per year • Spotted Seatrout Positive relationships between fish or shellfish abundance or harvest with freshwater inflow • Texas - blue crab, shrimps, red drum (Longley 1994) • Australia - mullet, barramundi (Meynecke et. 2006) • Africa - shrimp (Gammelsrod 1992) • Cuba - shrimps, mullet, oysters (Baisre and Arboleya, 2006) • California - striped bass, smelt (Jassby et al. 1995, Kimmerer 2002) • Florida • Appalachicola - oysters, blue crab (Wilber, 1992, 1994) • Everglades - pink shrimp (Browder 1985) • Little Manatee - snook, blue crab, mullet (FWRI 2007) • Alafia River - red drum, mysids, moharra (FRWI, 2005, Peebles 2005) • Peace River - mysids, sn. seatrout, pink shrimp (USF 2002, FWRI 2004) • Myakka River - anchovy, spot, pink shrimp (FWRI and USF, 2006) Typical life cycle of an estuarine dependent species (snook) Tidal freshwater stream Eggs Juveniles Larvae Spawn Salt marsh Adapted from Lewis, Gilmore, Crewz and Odum, 1988 Fish life stages vs. mean salinity at capture Browder and Moore 1981 16 800 C u ) m 4 12 600 0 u 1 l a * t 3 i v m e ( V e o m l u u 8 l 400 m o e V t ( m n e 3 * m g 1 e 0 S 4 200 4 ) 0 0 0 4 8 12 16 20 Km From Tampa Bay Volume of Lower Alafia River by Kilometer Isohaline (salt line) movements in relation to flow NET SEAWARD FLOW NUTRIENTS Nursery “Hotspot” Alafia River - Sediment Organic Matter Organic matter (% matter (% dry weight)Organic Kilometer Grandidierella bonnieroides Laeonereis culveri A B Tubificidae Streblospio gynobranchiata C D Alafia River Benthic Macroinvertebrate Abundance Nemertea sp. Chironomous sp.. By Kilometer E F Mytilopsis leucophaeta Cyathura polita G H Chlorophyll a (µg/l) Kilometer Alafia River Location of peak chlorophyll a concentrations vs. inflow Km = 19.57 – 2.72 x Ln(Inflow) r2 = 0.52 p<.001 Kilometer Alafia River Predicted shift of peak chlorophyll a concentrations Baseline and MFL withdrawals Water Residence Time vs. Flow Lower Peace River Myakka River – fish and invertebrate sampling zones Larval and early juvenile fish species richness by month Number of taxa Number sampled Seasonal nursery use of the estuary (seines) Sand Seatrout Red drum Fish / Invertebrate distribution response to inflow Trinectes maculatus juveniles Americamysis almyra Effect of minimum flows – Lower Alafia Distribution of fishes and invertebrates Predicted Shift in KM Distribution A Predicted Shift in KmU B U Edotea triloba Americamysis almyra (Mysid Shrimp) (Isopod) Baseline Baseline Altered Altered 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Kilometer Kilometer C Predicted Shift in KMU Distribution D Predicted Shift in KMU Distribution Anchoa mitchilli juveniles (Bay Anchovy) Brevoortia smithi juveniles (Yellowfin Menhaden) Baseline Baseline Altered Altered 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Kilometer Kilometer Fish / Invertebrate abundance response to inflow Trinectes maculatus juveniles Americamysis almyra Salinity modeling Hydrodynamic model of Upper Charlotte Harbor including the Lower Peace and Myakka Rivers Linked to UF harbor model that extends into Gulf of Mexico Hectares Bottom Dissolved Oxygen vs Freshwater Inflow E Kilometers 12 to 15 10 9 8 7 6 5 (mg/L) 4 3 2 Bottom Dissolved Oxygen Oxygen Dissolved Bottom 1 0 0 200 400 600 800 Freshwater Inflow Summary • Florida has many unimpounded rivers with largely intact natural flow regimes • Withdrawal schedules need to consider seasonal aspects of biological use and the nonlinear response of many variables to low and high flows Hydrobiological approach to percent-of flow method • Assess historical changes in river’s flow regime (trend analysis of different flow parameters) • Account for human effects on flows (e.g., withdrawals, agriculture, physical alterations) • Create baseline flow record - select time period for baseline assessment • Use various predictive models to reconstruct salinity, water quality, and biological characteristics of the estuary under baseline flows • Simulate ecological effects of different percent flow reductions from the baseline condition Estuarine Resources Evaluated Estuarine Minimum Flows • Area, volume, and shoreline length of salinity zones for fish, invertebrate and wetlands communities • Relationships of flow with primary production • Relationships of flow with water residence time • Relationships of flow with water quality and dissolved oxygen Relationships of flow with Fish and invertebrate distribution and abundance Thermal requirements for manatees.