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Klamath Project Operations Biological Assessment Coho Salmon: Factors Affecting Species Environment Findings from recent studies on main stem Klamath River water temperatures, including PacifiCorp (2006) and Dunsmoor and Huntington (2006), are: (1) Higher flows in the spring from reservoir releases tend to be cooler than would be expected under a natural flow regime due to the thermal mass in the reservoirs. (2) Thermal mass of the reservoirs is responsible for an increase in fall water temperature over what would be expected under a natural flow regime. (3) The reservoirs generally dampen the expected day-to-day and diurnal thermal cycle although releases below IGD imprints the flow and thermal signal downstream and reflects both operational changes in flow constrained by a limit on maximum turbine releases of 1735 cfs. (4) The operational zone of impact on the thermal regime is pragmatically confined from IGD downstream to the vicinity of Seiad Valley (river mile 129) and dependant of flow release magnitudes at IGD. Various flow rates from IGD can influence water temperature by altering the impact of tributary contribution and changing transit time, depth, and width of the Klamath River (Watercourse 2003). Generally, during late spring and early summer, discharges from Iron Gate Reservoir tend to be below equilibrium temperature (Deas and Orlob 1999, Watercourse 2003; Cramer Fish Sciences 2007 Report). However, the cooling effect to the Klamath River is diminished with increased distance from the dam (Deas and Orlob 1999; Campbell et al. 2001; Cramer Fish Sciences 2007 Report). The cooler water temperature is attributed to the temperature dynamics of Iron Gate Reservoir. Water behind IGD is also the source of cold water for Iron Gate Hatchery. During fall, Iron Gate Reservoir will periodically release water above the river’s equilibrium temperature, acting as a heat source for the river (Deas and Orlob 1999). To further understand the relationship of flow to temperature, Reclamation commissioned Cramer Fish Sciences and Watercourse Engineering to develop a flow and temperature components for the coho salmon life-cycle model for the main stem Klamath River below IGD. More detailed information on the model may be found in a following section, Cramer Fish Science, Technical Memorandum 7 and in Appendix 3-B. Similar to the findings of Hardy and Addley (p. 47, 2006), Cramer Fish Sciences, in addition to several other modeling efforts, concluded that releases from IGD in most years would have a limited ability to regulate temperature in the middle Klamath River downstream of the confluence with the Scott River (river mile 144) and increased discharges do not provide appreciable thermal benefits beyond reduced diel temperature fluctuation in the vicinity of the dam (Deas and Orlob 1999; Campbell et al. 2001; Watercourse 2003; Cramer Fish Sciences 2007 Report). However, in years with low fall tributary flows, modeling suggests that increased IGD discharge could actually increase water temperature in the main stem of the lower Klamath River (Cramer Fish Sciences 2007 Report). This may be possible because the higher warmer flows within the main 223
Klamath Project Operations Biological Assessment Coho Salmon: Factors Affecting Species Environment stem could dilute the cooler tributary inputs. See Appendix 3-C for more detail on the relationship between water temperature, distance from IGD, and flow. In general, the diurnal range in water temperature is greatest in the summer and smallest in winter. Flow considerations likewise include seasonal and longitudinal variability between IGD and the ocean. Accretions in winter and spring can increase the river flows by an order of magnitude, while summer flows, although doubling between IGD and Turwar, do not increase to the same extent. The IGD (river mile 190) to Turwar (river mile 5) reach extends approximately 185 miles. Several main tributaries flow into the reach: Shasta River, Scott River, Salmon River, and Trinity River (Figure 3-16). Figure 3-16. Simulated seasonal flows in the Klamath River from Link River to Turwar in 2000. Flows from IGD comprise a progressively smaller proportion of the average annual and seasonal main stem flows at points further downriver. 12.00 10.00 8.00 Fall Summer Spring Winter Trinity R. Flow MAF 6.00 Salmon R. 4.00 2.00 Link Dam Keno Dam J.C. Boyle Dam below springs CopcoDam Iron Gate Dam Shasta R. Scott R. 0.00 255 230 205 180 155 130 105 80 55 30 5 River Mile Source: Figure 14, p. 88, Cramer Fish Sciences 2007 Technical Memorandum 7. During winter, the water released from the IGD reservoir has its least effect on downstream temperatures, and the river warms slightly with progressive distance downstream. In spring, conditions may vary considerably, but the reservoir generally reduces main stem temperatures down to the Scott River. During late spring and early summer the reservoir tends to release waters that are on the order of 2 to 4 ºC below temperatures that would be experienced if IGD was not in place. The cooler water has a diminishing effect further downstream. From later summer into fall, the large thermal mass of the reservoir tends to create a thermal lag, where temperatures leaving the dam 224
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Biological Assessment The Effects o
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Biological Assessment The Effects o
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Klamath Project Operations Biologic
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This biological a
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Part 1 INTRODUCTION, ACTION AREA, A
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Part 2 ENDANGERED SUCKERS Sucker De
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Table 2-7. Upper Klamath Basin Nutr
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Part 3 COHO SALMON Information abou
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Page 198 and 199: Klamath Project Operations Biologic
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Description Part 5 BALD EAGLES A la
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Figure 5-1. Bald Eagle range in Nor
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Part 7 CONSULTATION HISTORY Section
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Part 9 LITERATURE CITED Agrawal, A.
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Accomplishment Report, Winter 2007.
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