Annex XIII: Hydropower & Fish (2013 - Present)

Objectives

Annex XIII has the broad objective of providing a better understanding of the effects of hydropower on fish. Given the potentially enormous scope of this topic, two main themes have been identified

• fish issues that directly affect hydropower operation and development and how best to manage them
• the impacts of new and existing hydropower development on fish. 

With this in mind, the Annex participants have agreed that fish migration in a wide sense be the main topic for further research with a special report on efficient two-way fish migration in regulated rivers. 

Deliverables

• A fish migration report with two main elements: technology development and important issues for a protocol on fish passage. 
• A report on best practices for fish management.
• A separate summary report is being considered in relation to the EU's Water Framework Directive

Methodology

Workshops
Site visits
Litertaure reviews
Collection of case histories of best  practice

Workshops & Conference Sessions

• Brussels, May 2017.  IEA Hydropower TCP and the European Commission DG RTD joint workshop on Hydropower and Fish: Research and Innovation in the Context of the European Policy Framework. The agenda and papers are available from the Publications section of this website.
• Montreux, Switzerland, October 2016. An Annex meeting took place on 10 October 2016 during the HYDRO 2016 Conference. This was attended by 19 persons, including Annex XIII participants, ExCo members and guests fromTurkey, Iceland, Thailand, Japan and OEM Voith Hydro.
• HYDRO 2015, Bordeaux, France October, 2015
• Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, March 2015
• Cernobbio, Italy, October, 2014
• Rovaniemi, Finland, June, 2014
• Trondheim, Norway, December 2013
• Vientiane, Lao PDR, August, 2013
• Sydney, Australia, June 2014: Workshop on Small-Scale Hydropower Development and Downstream Fish Passage at Existing Dams and Weirs in NSW and Beyond.

• IEAHydro Annex XIII members attended and presented at the workshop. Download the report.

Tasks

1. A fish migration report will have two main elements, technology development and important issues for a protocol on fish passage.

• Technology development will cover monitoring techniques such as sensor fish and fish passage routes including through turbine waterways
• The protocol will include licensing/re-licensing, verification of passage efficiency and cost benefit assessments. The report will serve as a toolbox and guideline for the member institutions and decision-makers in general.

2. A second important task will be focussed on fish management. This will include issues such as principles for sustainable fish management, effective measures for fish protection and an overview of regulatory regimes, for example those of the EU under the Water Framework Directive, and more generally, effective management models.

Task Members

Australia, Brazil, Finland, France, Lao PDR, Norway, USA