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The Okanagan Fish-Water Management (OKFWM) Tool: Balancing Water Objectives in Real-Time

The Okanagan Fish-Water Management (OKFWM) Tool: Balancing Water Objectives in Real-Time. Kim Hyatt, Brian Symonds, Andrew Wilson, Clint Alexander, Colin Daniel, Calvin Peters, David Marmorek, Howard Wright, Deana Machin, Brian Guy, Brent Philips, Harvey Andrusak, Chris Bull, Rick Klinge

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The Okanagan Fish-Water Management (OKFWM) Tool: Balancing Water Objectives in Real-Time

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  1. The Okanagan Fish-Water Management (OKFWM) Tool: Balancing Water Objectives in Real-Time Kim Hyatt, Brian Symonds, Andrew Wilson, Clint Alexander, Colin Daniel, Calvin Peters, David Marmorek,Howard Wright, Deana Machin,Brian Guy, Brent Philips, Harvey Andrusak, Chris Bull, Rick Klinge Status of Central Okanagan Watersheds Jan 27, 2006

  2. Water Use Conflict • Flood Control • Fish survival • Agricultural & domestic consumption • Recreation / Navigation

  3. Okanagan Basin Drainage area = 6,090 km2 Surface area = 351 km2 Volume ~ 24.6 billion m3 Net Feb 1st - July 31st inflows ~ 560 million m3 or roughly 1.6m water surface elevation change

  4. Large variation in total net annual inflow

  5. Day to day question is: how should release patterns be managed? Okanagan Lake Dam (Penticton)

  6. More people, demand & near-shore infrastructure

  7. Passage index – Wells Dam Columbia River, WA

  8. Improved understanding of biophysical relationships affecting survival of Okanagan River Sockeye Salmon

  9. Sockeye & Okanagan River Flows Sockeye Spawning Incubation Emergence Scour & entombment Dessication

  10. OSOYOOSLAKE (a) North Basin Central Basin South Basin > 17 OC < 4 ppm O2 Useable Volume Depth (m) Temperature-Oxygen “Squeeze” and Density-Independent Rearing Limitations in Osoyoos Lake

  11. COBTWG: Do better through inter-agency, inter-disciplinary collaboration on assessment tools Current understanding of hydrology, SK, KOK, impacts on people multiple objectives & tradeoffs Science foundation See trade-offs OKFWM Share ideas Web-accessible assumptions & results Self-correcting forecasts using real-time data Real-time data Train a new generation of water managers

  12. Through collaborative process of objective setting, data gathering & joint tool development overcome: Science foundation See trade-offs • Self-orientation • Absence of trust • Perceived lack of accountability OKFWM Share ideas Real-time data create: • Software as lasting reference (not just paper record) • Easily engage new water/fish mgrs

  13. What is OKFWM? • Internet-accessible decision support system • Incorporates real-time data and biophysical models. Field derived & testable empirical relationships.Value judgements on acceptable ranges for performance measures. • Developed collaboratively by working group based on historical data and intensive field work by DFO, ONA, BCMoE, SUMMIT • Allows gaming and rapid trade-off analysis for daily to weekly in-season decisions

  14. Benefits:Updated water management guidelines + shared appreciation of priorities

  15. What happened last year?

  16. Spring 2004 & climate -- ‘nervous’ mgrs.

  17. Q: Will flow mgmt. ‘make more sockeye smolts’? 25yr retrospective analysis: “If you had used OKFWM between 1974 & 2003, what releases would have been made & how might this have changed the abundance of sockeye smolts leaving Osoyoos Lake?”

  18. 1991 Actual 1991 w OKFWM Lake Level Kokanee dewatering avoided Dam Outflow Recreation maintained Down-stream River Flow Small flood ‘premium’ Sockeye scour avoided

  19. Benefits depend on water year, but 55% avg. increase in sockeye smolt production *for details see: Hyatt and Alexander. 2005. Retrospective analysis.

  20. Benefits: Refined year-type specific water management strategies *for details see: Alexander, Symonds, Hyatt, eds. 2005. Apprentice Fish/Water Mgmt Guidebook.

  21. Benefits: Rapid knowledge transfer -- not “600 pgs. of dust” on a shelf • Data collection & paper science are foundation of OKFWM… • …But software is the living, tangible product of effort: • Managersenthusiastically adopted tool for operational use (2003, 2004, 2005 to present) • “Apprentice” fish/water managers able to competently balance objectives after simulating 2 to 3 water years. • Highly effective training investment of ~ 10 to 14 hours that otherwise would require 3 or 4 years.

  22. Additional Information Kim Hyatt Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Nanaimo, BC 250-756-7217 hyattk@pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca Clint Alexander ESSA Technologies Ltd., Kelowna BC 250-860-3824 calexander@essa.com www.essa.com

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