This workshop will present speakers and topics on high flow subjects important to natural resources management on natural and regulated rivers. The morning session will cover high flow specifications for flushing flows, channel maintenance, floodplain connectivity, and estuarine mixing functions. The afternoon session will cover policy and economic considerations for high flow specifications affecting water rights, downstream users, and reservoir operations. The workshop will include Q&A with the speakers.

For additional information or questions, please contact Alan Wald by phone 360-902-2597 or email waldarw@dfw.wa.gov

The MesoHABSIM simulation model was developed in 2000 as an enhancement of the habitat descriptions used in the physical habitat simulation model (PHABSIM). MesoHABSIM integrates system-scale assessment of ecological integrity in flowing waters with quantitative information on physical habitat distribution to simulate habitat changes at the watershed scale. This workshop will present the basics of MesoHABSIM application and how the approach creates a framework for the comprehensive and quantitative analysis of human-induced alterations and identifies effective flow and channel restoration measures.

For additional information or questions, please contact Piotr Parasiewicz by phone 413-687-4740 or email Piotr@rushingrivers.org

The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has developed and implemented environmental flow recommendations in the United States and abroad. TNC uses a collaborative process in conjunction with software tools to develop flow recommendations to benefit natural freshwater ecosystem health and biodiversity, and implements these recommendations in an adaptive management framework. The primary software tools used by TNC are the Indicators of Hydrologic Alteration (IHA) software, which uses daily streamflow data to compute a series of flow statistics that can be used to assess hydrologic change; and the Regime Prescription Tool, which is a visualization tool jointly developed with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that can be used to display environmental flow recommendations in workshop settings.

This workshop will start with an overview of the concept of environmental flows and a description of the range of tools and methods that are available for developing flow recommendations. The IHA software will then be described in detail, and there will be a hands-on training exercise using the software where participants will be introduced to its capabilities. The IHA computes 67 different flow statistics, including 34 statistics based on five Environmental Flow Components (large floods, small floods, high flow pulses, low flows, extreme low flows), which are particularly useful for environmental flow projects. Finally, case studies will be presented for TNC projects where IHA analysis has been conducted and flow recommendations have been collaboratively developed and implemented. The workshop will incorporate substantial time for discussion to aid participants in best understanding how the tools and methods presented will be useful in their work.

The hands-on software training portion of the workshop will be run by having participants install and use the IHA software on their own laptop computers. So those participants who have a laptop computer available will need to bring it to the workshop. Participants will be asked to pair up on computers during this session, so that students without computers can also participate.

Attendance is limited to 60 to facilitate hands-on training.

For additional information or questions, please contact Tom Fitzhugh
by phone 360-570-0762 or email tfitzhugh@tnc.org