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<br />, , <br /> <br />Application of IFG's lnstream Water Temperature Model in the Upper Colorado River <br /> <br />"; <br /> <br />The Colorado River below Glen Canyon dam previousiy <br />supponed large populations of squa.....'-lSh and chub: now, <br />none are present (Minckley and Deacon. 1968). Chub, <br />however, have been observed in the tail waters of the Linie <br />Colorado River beiore these ......aters mix with the cold main. <br />stem waters. <br />The hypolimnentic (deep water) release from the reser. <br />voir subseauent to its closure nrovides relativel\' cold water <br />below Gl~ Canyon dam. Fo; example. according to pub- <br />lisl\ed water quality data for the USGS pge at Lees Ferry, <br />which is located ~6 kilometers downstream from the dam. <br />the mean July temperature in 1973 was 8.SoC ro.s, Geo- <br />logical Survey, 1973). The cold thermal regime induced by <br />the reservoir persists far downstream because there are no <br />~arge tributaries to ameliorate these very cold release waters, <br />\ The resulting lack of successful spawning has eliminated <br />\ squawfJSh and chub populatiom in these cold water reaches <br />! (MWer. er 1lI.., 198~). <br />~ Below Aaming Gor~ resenoir, a similar situation exists. <br />No squawfish or chub are currently found in the Green <br />River between the dam and the con1luence with the Yampa <br />River. a distance of 104 kilometers. The Yampa is an un. <br />conuaIled moutary that contributes more than one.third <br />of the Green River flow. Both fISh mec:ies still inhabit the <br />Yampa and are also found in the G~ below the Yampa <br />con1luence (Holden and Crist, 1981 ). Water temperature is <br />sufficient to explain the absence of squawfish and chub in <br />the Green above the confluence. <br />To comply with the Endan~d Species Act, future <br />developers in the UCRB will be required to eDSUre that pro- <br />posed' projects maintain necessary water temperatures. Be- <br />cause the inmeam water temperature model can predict <br />dOWDStream water temperatures under various conditions ~ <br />~= reservoir release temperatures and dischal'l!e5. the <br />m could be used to analyze proposed projectS and to <br />sugest means of mitigating, or even enhancing, aquatic <br />habitaL <br /> <br />) <br /> <br />MODEL APPUCATIONS <br /> <br />'Ibe impacts of reservoir release temperatures and dis- <br />charps. or any other form of diversion or augmentation. on <br />dOWllStream water temperatures can be simulated by the <br />model. The effects of otherwise natum flows can be in- <br />cluded in the simulation. This paper will present twO ap- <br />plications of interest to water resource planners and fIShery <br />manaaerSo Two outnut disnlavs are useflJ! to visualize these <br />applications - a. longitudinal temperature profIle aJ1d a <br />temperature versus site dischar e curve. The fust example <br />UStrates an app lCation using the longitudinal profile Out- <br />put display. This displa~' locates the river reaches of suitable <br />spawning habitat for squawflSh. The second example illus. <br />trates an application using the temperature discharge output <br />display. it is used TO determine site discharge mnges neces. <br />sary to maint:lin suitable temperature for squa.....iish and <br />.:hub spawning. <br /> <br />The fU'St example demonstrates do.....nstream tempera. <br />ture changes due to various reservoir release temperatures. <br />Output was obtained for a given reservoir release discharge <br />and a single constant set of hydrometeorological condi. <br />tions, The simulated water temperatures include the effeCts <br />oi all additional normal flows in the stream network. The <br />water temperatures are plotted versus river location for each <br />release temperature (Figure :). The plots are called longitu- <br />dinal temperature promes, <br />In this example, only the profIle from the Yampa syn- <br />thetic gage Oocation of assumed reservw) down to the <br />Ouray Study site are shown. Normal July hydrometeoro- <br />logical conditions were used. Each profIle is for the specie <br />fied reservoir release temperature varying from 4-ISoC and <br />one at 19.400C. The latter prome is the normal July water <br />temperature at the Yampa synthetic gage and. therefore. <br />represents existing normal July conditions. The normal <br />July diurnal fluctuation is less than =2.00C at Ouray. <br />Suitable squawfish spawning temperatures are superim- <br />posed on the promes to clearly see the resulting river reaches <br />of suitable spawning temperature habitat, Also added is <br />substrate suitability, The river reach below Split Mountain <br />contains a sand substrate which is unsuitable for spawning <br />(Prewitt, eu1.., 1981). <br />This example shows that assumed reservoir release tern. <br />peratures between 4 and lSoC would not provide the mini- <br />mal spawning temperature threshold for squawfish at any <br />suitable downstream location between the assumed,reser. <br />voir (Yampa synthetic gage) and Split Mountain. Only reo <br />leases approaching existing conditions (19.400C) ~ to <br />ensure proper spawning temperatures in some of the reo <br />maining known spawning reaches betWeen these two loca- <br />tions. The Green River between the Yampa-Green con- <br />fluence and Split Mountain provi~es only marginal spawn- <br />ing habitat (Joseph. et 1lI.., 1977). <br />A validation check was made at interior gages within the <br />network. Measured water temperawres (smoothed by the <br />respective pgr's r~ession model) w.ge comlJared tn wlues <br />that were independently e!.edic~d Q)' the p~'5ica1 process <br />~odel. The difference between the predicted and measured <br />\'Ilues is the validation check. The result of the vaiidation <br />check at Jensen gage, which is located between the Yampa. <br />Green confluence and the Ouray stUdy site. was +O.S:oC <br />for the normal July hydrometeorological conditions, Ob- <br />viously, this prediction is the uncalibrated \'alue: the model <br />could easily be calibrated to completely eliminate the dif- <br />ference. <br />The above analysis was made using historical data for the <br />operation of Aaming Gorge. The historical normal July <br />,~ temperature release is 6.51 oC. Recentl\', a variable le~ <br />selective withdrawl operatinsr: s:heme has been implement~d <br />at Aaminsr: Gorsr:e. The new normal Juh' release temnera. <br />ture is 11.110C Wemer. er ai,. 1981).'This results in a <br />Green River water te-mperature of 19.5oC inunediately be. <br />low its confluence with the Yampa for existing normal J..iy <br />hy:irometeorologica: conditions. Therefore. the Green Ri\'e~ <br />