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Project T-66-R1
Project Title: Demonstrating the Benefits of Stream Restoration to Aquatic Communities in the Cache River Basin
Community and/or Species Focus:
Cache River Basin
Goals/Objectives:
- Validate hydrologic models that predict the stream response to the addition of water to the lower Cache River
- Quantify oxygen dynamics in the lower Cache River before and after the addition of water
- Determine how increasing flow in the lower Cache channel will affect the production, abundance, and diversity of macroinvertebrate species
Achievements:
- Developed a model which predicts that delivery of small amounts of water from the upper to lower Cache would decrease the likelihood of hypoxic conditions in the lower Cache
- Documented several periods of hypoxic and anoxic conditions, finding that oxygen demand in the sediments from the lower Cache had a higher oxygen demand than those from the upper Cache
- The macroinvertebrate community varied during periods of water alteration, demonstrating that the addition of small water volume can have profound effects on shaping stream communities in a short time
Post-Project Survey (if applicable): n/a
Project Period: August 2011 - August 2013
Principle Investigator(s):
Matt Whiles (Southern Illinois University Carbondale)
Final Report: