Session C1: Prioritizing Barrier Removals in Great Lakes Tributaries: Balancing Tradeoffs Between Native and Invasive Fish Species

Presenter Information

Jesse O'Hanley, University of Kent
Thomas Neeson, University of Wisconsin-Platteville
Allison Moody, University of Wisconsin
Margaret Guyette, University of Wisconsin
Matthew Diebel, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Matthew Herbert, The Nature Conservancy
Mary Khoury, The Nature Conservancy
Eugene Yacobson, The Nature Conservancy
Patrick Doran, The Nature Conservancy
Michael Ferris, University of Wisconsin
Peter McIntyre, University of Wisconsin

Location

Groningen, The Netherlands

Event Website

http://fishpassage.umass.edu/

Start Date

22-6-2015 10:40 AM

End Date

22-6-2015 10:55 AM

Description

Abstract

Tributaries to the Great Lakes are highly fragmented by dams and road crossings that act as potential barriers to migratory fishes, restricting their access to historical riverine spawning grounds. There is growing investment in removing or modifying barriers to restore native fish migrations and ecosystem function, but these efforts may also increase available habitat for invasive sea lamprey. The restoration community lacks a systematic method for comparing these costs and benefits to assess which barrier removal projects would offer the greatest return on investment. To address this problem, we developed a basin-scale mathematical optimization model to prioritize barriers for removal on the basis of upstream breeding habitat for both native and invasive fishes. We parameterized the model using an extensive database of dams and road crossings; economic models of projected barrier removal and lampricide application costs; and historical data describing distributions of native and invasive species. We describe trade-offs resulting from increased habitat access for native migratory fishes and sea lamprey that would accompany different barrier removal scenarios. We further discuss the sensitivity of the model to uncertainty in estimates of tributary suitability for native and invasive species and investigate the benefit of simultaneously planning barrier removal and lamprey management actions.

Comments

Presenting Author Bio:

Jesse O’Hanley is a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in the Kent Business School, University of Kent, UK. He obtained a B.S. in Biological Sciences and an M.S. in Engineering-Economic Systems and Operations Research both from Stanford University and holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Science, Policy & Management from the University of California, Berkeley. Before joining Kent, Dr. O’Hanley worked as a postdoctoral fellow in the Environmental Change Institute, University of Oxford on the prediction of biodiversity impacts of climate change. Dr. O’Hanley’s research focuses on the development of decision support tools for environmental planning and management. Recent and current lines of inquiry include river infrastructure mitigation and placement, nature reserve network design, and species distribution modeling. He has worked closely over a number of years with government agencies and NGOs on the development and application of optimization based approaches for river infrastructure mitigation and placement. He has long-term research and consultancy projects spanning California, Oregon, Alaska, Maine, the Great Lakes region and the UK.