John Richardson, UBC - Learning How to Protect Water for Environmental and Human Needs in a Variable World

Learning how to protect water for

environmental and human needs in a

variable world

John S. Richardson University of British Columbia,

Vancouver, Canada

[email protected] http://faculty.forestry.ubc.ca/richardson/

Once upon a time …

Rivers and log transport – splash dams

What are our objectives for water? Do we know what we want?

Richardson JS & Thompson RM. 2009. Setting conservation targets for freshwater ecosystems in forested catchments. Pp. 244-263 In: Villard M-A & Jonsson B-G (Eds.) Setting Conservation Targets for Managed Forest Landscapes. Cambridge University Press.

Aquatic life – salmonids, etc. – globally most-endangered ecosystem and biodiversity

Human consumption – direct

Hydrological features – e.g. flood control

Agriculture – irrigated crops

Agriculture – livestock

Industry

Power generation – hydroelectric and others

Recreation

Amenity values

Policy

Science

Testing for effectiveness and efficiency; trials

Based on observations not usually collected specifically for an emerging issue

Richardson JS & Thompson RM. 2009. Setting conservation targets for freshwater ecosystems in forested catchments. Pp. 244-263 In: Villard M-A & Jonsson B-G (Eds.) Setting Conservation Targets for Managed Forest Landscapes. Cambridge University Press.

Policy

Science

Testing for effectiveness and efficiency; trials

Based on observations not usually collected specifically for an emerging issue

Richardson JS & Thompson RM. 2009. Setting conservation targets for freshwater ecosystems in forested catchments. Pp. 244-263 In: Villard M-A & Jonsson B-G (Eds.) Setting Conservation Targets for Managed Forest Landscapes. Cambridge University Press.

Need to react! What is the target? Measureable?

1. QUANTITY (supply)

2. QUALITY – temperature, water quality, habitat structure

3. CONTINUITY and habitat

1. QUANTITY

“Rivers in some of the world’s most populous regions are losing water, ...”

"The distribution of the world's fresh water, already an important topic," says Cliff Jacobs of NSF's Division of Atmospheric Sciences, "will occupy front and center stage for years to come in developing adaptation strategies to a changing climate.”

Of rivers examined, more than 70% were decreasing (period 1948 to 2004)

Including: Yellow River (China), Ganges (India), Niger (west Africa), Colorado (SW USA)

Rivers that were increasing were largely northern rivers, increased by glacier melt

Appear to be related to climate change (consistent with all predictions, but of course there is no way to test this directly)

NSF – National Science Foundation (USA)

“Water crisis closes Tofino businesses.Resort town is forced to ration drinking water, turn away visitors”Vancouver Sun, 30 August 2006

Headline

Carnation Ck

Lillooet R

Fishtrap Ck

Capilano R

Coquihalla R

Hydroclimatic regimes: examples

05

10

15

20

Carnation Creek

Q (

m3 s1

)

1980 1981 1982 1983

05

01

00

15

02

00

25

03

00

Capilano Creek

Q (

m3 s1

)

1980 1981 1982 1983

Carnation Creek

Capilano Creek

Dis

char

ge (

m3 s

-1)

Figures courtesy of Dr. Dan Moore, UBC

Coastal – rainfall-dominated

02

46

8

Fishtrap Creek

Q (

m3 s1

)

1980 1981 1982 1983

01

02

03

04

0

Coquihalla Creek

Q (

m3 s1

)

1980 1981 1982 1983

Fishtrap Creek

Coquihalla Creek

Dis

char

ge (

m3 s

-1)

Figures courtesy of Dr. Dan Moore, UBC

Interior – Snowmelt-dominated

02

00

40

06

00

80

0

Lillooet RiverQ

(m

3 s1)

1980 1981 1982 1983

Dis

char

ge (

m3 s

-1)

Lillooet River

Snowmelt and glaciermelt

Figures courtesy of Dr. Dan Moore, UBC

01

02

03

04

05

0

Q (

m3 s1

)

Nov Jan Mar May Jul Sep

1923-19461947-19761977-2005

Historic streamflow patterns for Capilano River during warm and cool PDO phasesD

isch

arge

(m

3 s

-1)

Figures courtesy of Dr. Dan Moore, UBC

Schindler, DW & WF Donahue. 2006. An impending water crisis in Canada’s western prairie provinces. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 103: 7210-7216.

0 500 1000

km

Canada

Rocky Mountains

Pac

ific

Oce

an

Prairies

photo: Jim Wigington

Carnation Creek, Vancouver Island

picture courtesy of Dr. Peter Tschaplinski, BC Ministry of Forests and Range

Change in June-July-August average soil moisture content from 1960-1990 to 2070-2100 from HadCM3 IS92a

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climatechange/science/projections/soil_jja.html

Units: millimetres

-50 -20 -10 -5 +5

Nooksack Dace

Photo: Jordan Rosenfeld

Richardson JS, E Taylor, D Schluter, M Pearson & T Hatfield. 2010. Do riparian zones qualify as critical habitat for endangered freshwater fishes? Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 67:1197–1204.

Photo: Mike Pearson

Large predators

Large detritivores

0,0

+,0 +,+

0,+

Controlling for body size to separate size from functional roleBoth stonefly (Plecoptera) larvae

Species losses – local extinctions

Lecerf A, Richardson JS. Large invertebrates dominate the top-down control over stream ecosystem functioning. Manuscript in review

Experimental low flows

Measures Leaf litter decomposition Benthos Biofilms

Drs. Santiago Larrañaga & John Richardson

Some consequences of climate change for aquatic systems

The minimal water flows, and not the averages, are the impacts that are most difficult to plan for, and the most damaging for aquatic ecosystems

More dams and greater extraction – less water in lakes, reservoirs and rivers

Warmer water and higher concentrations of contaminants

Balancing allocations of water for ...

Power productionIrrigationHuman consumptionIndustrial useRecreationAquatic Ecosystemsetc.

2. QUALITY (temperatures, chemistry, structure)

photo: Rachael Dudaniec

Coastal giant salamander

A threatened species sensitive to elevated temperatures and changes in water quality –

changes can be due to forest harvest, urbanisation, being downwind of greater Vancouver, and global change

Cole JJ et al. 2007. Plumbing the global carbon cycle: Integrating inland waters into the terrestrial carbon budget. Ecosystems 10 : 171-184.

Inland waters

Inland waters

Land

Land

0.9

1.9 0.9

0.9

0.23

Ocean

Ocean

Sediment storage

0.75CO2 evasion

Values in Pg

Cole JJ et al. 2007. Plumbing the global carbon cycle: Integrating inland waters into the terrestrial carbon budget. Ecosystems 10 : 171-184.

Inland water components

StreamsLakesReservoirsWetlands RiversEstuariesGround waterTotal

CO2 efflux to the atmosphere

NA0.110.28NA0.210.120.010.75

Storage in sediments

0.23

Export to the ocean

0.9

Global inland water C fluxes. Mid-range estimates of annual global transport of carbon (Pg) through major inland water components

Year

PO

M (

g A

FD

M /

m2)

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Exp

ort

(g

AF

DM

/d

/ m

2)

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Co

nsu

mp

tion

(g

/ m

2 /

d)

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

Ave

rage

da

ily d

isch

arg

e (

L/s

)

0

100

200

300

400

500

1979 1980 1981 1982

range: 0.3 to 516 L/s

Richardson JS, Hoover TM & Lecerf A. 2009. Coarse particulate organic matter dynamics in small streams: towards linking function to physical structure. Freshwater Biology 54:2116-2126.

Modelling to study the roles of flow, retention potential, temperature, and leaf type

Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4

Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

Time

CP

OM

(g

AF

DM

/ m

2)

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140roughness 0.9roughness 0.5roughness 0.1

Hemlock - retentiveness 0.25

Alder - retentiveness 0.75

Richardson JS, Hoover TM & Lecerf A. 2009. Coarse particulate organic matter dynamics in small streams: towards linking function to physical structure. Freshwater Biology 54:2116-2126.

3. CONTINUITY and habitat

Richardson JS, Zhang Y, Marczak LB. 2010. Resource subsidies across the land-freshwater interface and responses in recipient communities. River Research and Applications 26:55-66.

.Wipfli MS, Richardson JS & Naiman RJ. 2007. Ecological linkages between headwaters and downstream ecosystems: transport of organic matter, invertebrates, and wood down headwater channels. J. Am. Water Resources Assoc. 43:72-85.

Photo: Mark Wipfli, U of Alaska

Subsidies to downstream

Demonstration of downstream effects

What happens to the productivity and biodiversity of downstream ecosystems when these subsidies from upstream are eliminated or altered?

An important ecosystem service

Energy, nutrients, structure

Metapopulation dynamics

Populations connected by dispersal promotes recolonisation and genetic mixing

Metapopulation dynamics

Isolated populations may risk local extinction with no chance of new colonists

X

X

X

CONNECTION

Vulnerability of species’ populations in headwaters and springs – and recovery within a catchment

Fagan, WF. 2002. Connectivity, fragmentation, and extinction risk in dendritic metapopulations. Ecology 83:3243-3249.

X

X

flow

Richardson JS & Moore RD. 2009. Chapter 13 – Stream and riparian ecology. In Compendium of Forest Hydrology and Geomorphology in British Columbia. R.G. Pike et al. (editors). B.C. Ministry of Forests and Range Research Branch, Victoria, B.C. and FORREX Forest Research Extension Partnership, Kamloops, B.C. Land Management Handbook (TBD). URL: http://www.forrex.org/program/water/PDFs/Compendium/Compendium_Chapter13.pdf

Vertebrate use of freshwater riparian areas

Fish eaters (piscivores) eagle, mergansers, loons, osprey, kingfisher, mink, river otter, bears, herons, garter snake, etc.

Richardson JS & RJ Danehy. 2007. A synthesis of the ecology of headwater streams and their riparian zones in temperate forests. Forest Science 53:131-147.

Invertebrate eaters American dipper, harlequin duck, bats, water shrews, phaleropes, grebes, spotted sandpipers, marsh wrens, amphibians, flycatchers, swallows, etc.

© Mike Dunn

Microclimate: amphibians

Breeding sites: ducks, geese, grebes, swallows, osprey, wrens, amphibians, etc.

Structure: flycatchers, robins and other thrushes, swallows, eagles, shrew mole, etc.

Water: Beaver, muskrat, mountain beaver

Richardson JS, RJ Naiman, FJ Swanson & DE Hibbs. 2005. Riparian communities associated with Pacific Northwest headwater streams: assemblages, processes, and uniqueness. Journal of the American Water Resources Association 41:935-947.

Moore RD, DL Spittlehouse & A Story. 2005. Riparian microclimate and stream temperature response to forest harvesting – a review. Journal of the American Water Resources Association 41: 813-834.

Coot nest

© Jack Dodge

Vertebrate use of freshwater riparian areas

Vancouver Island, BC

30 m reserve10 m reserve

control

clearcut

50% basal area removal

-1

-0.5

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

Amphibians SmallMammals

Birds Molluscs Arthropods

Cu

mu

lativ

e m

ea

n e

ffect

siz

e

(31) (69) (285) (2) (10)

Marczak LB, Sakamaki T, Turvey SL, Deguise I, Wood SLR & Richardson JS. 2010. Are forested buffers an effective conservation strategy for riparian fauna? An assessment using meta-analysis. Ecological Applications 20:126-134.

Meta-analysis of 397 studies of riparian zone effects compared to intact forest

Western toad

Loss of habitat

Loss of connections

Protected Areas and Special Management Zones

http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfd/pubs/Docs/Mr/Mr112/page24.htm

Protection

~14% protected

Herbert MS, McIntyre PB, Doran PJ, Allan JD & Abell R. 2010. Terrestrial reserve networks do not adequately represent aquatic ecosystems. Conservation Biology 24:1002-1011.

Balancing human and ecosystem needs for water

Objectives of riparian

management

Maintain natural

functions

Objectives for riparian management

Fish habitat (large wood, geomorphology)

Shade (temperature, algae)

Nutrient uptake

Sediment interception

Litter input (& invertebrates)

Streambank integrity

Habitat for vertebrates and other organisms (wildlife in the broadest sense)

Corridors for dispersal

Aesthetics How much is “enough”?

Policy

Science

Testing for effectiveness and efficiency; trials

Based on observations not usually collected specifically for an emerging issue

Richardson JS & Thompson RM. 2009. Setting conservation targets for freshwater ecosystems in forested catchments. Pp. 244-263 In: Villard M-A & Jonsson B-G (Eds.) Setting Conservation Targets for Managed Forest Landscapes. Cambridge University Press.

Need science and other information to inform policy, and science to explore how things work and to rigorously test policy

1. Objectives and effectiveness

2. Recovery processes

3. Safety factors core habitats, extremes, climate change, landscape connections

fish, water, sediment, biodiversity, channel stability, ecosystem services, etc., etc.

time frame, point of reference, rare species, non-stationary world, etc.

North American Water and Power Alliance (NAWAPA) – Ralph M. Parsons Company, California

For additional reading, see Nature – 20 March 2008

Perhaps increased trade in “virtual water” instead

What are our objectives for water? Do we know what we want?

Richardson JS & Thompson RM. 2009. Setting conservation targets for freshwater ecosystems in forested catchments. Pp. 244-263 In: Villard M-A & Jonsson B-G (Eds.) Setting Conservation Targets for Managed Forest Landscapes. Cambridge University Press.

Aquatic life, biodiversity and ecosystems

Human consumption – direct

Hydrological features – e.g. flood control

Agriculture – irrigated crops

Agriculture – livestock

Industry

Power generation – hydroelectric and others

Recreation

Amenity values

Final Messages

Quality – temperature, chemistry, and structure

Continuity – aquatic species have limited options

Quantity – extremes