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An integrated approach to hydropower impact assessment

II. Submerged macrophytes in some Norwegian hydro-electric lakes

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Abstract

The submerged aquatic vegetation of 17 Norwegian lakes is described and related to the environmental impacts that result from hydro-electric power (HEP) use of these lakes. Largely based upon physiognomical features, three main community types are discerned. These are denoted as (a) shallow-water, (b) mid-depth, and (c) deep-water community, respectively. The aquatic macrophytes are classified into a plant strategy framework. This classification suggests that these macrophytes frequently exhibit combined traits of the ‘S’ (stress-tolerating), ‘R’ (ruderal), and ‘C’ (competitive) strategies. A plant-strategy index for the lakes is derived from the species classification and related to their HEP use.

Broadly, the response features of hydrolake vegetation are: (1) a decline in species richness; (2) the gradual disappearance of the shallow-water and mid-depth communities; (3) a conspicuous absence of vascular submerged macrophytes in storage hydrolakes when lake levels change more than 7 m annually, and; (4) an increased incidence of species possessing plant strategies of the ruderal (R) type. The implications of these results for an environmental impact assessment of hydropower schemes are discussed.

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  1. Norwegian Institute for Water Research, P.O.B. 33 Blindern, N-0313, Oslo 3, Norway

    Bjørn Rørslett

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Rørslett, B. An integrated approach to hydropower impact assessment. Hydrobiologia 175, 65–82 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00008476

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