Impacts of groundwater abstraction on the trout fishery of the River Piddle, Dorset; and an approach to their alleviation
✍ Scribed by A. P. Strevens
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 1999
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 159 KB
- Volume
- 13
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0885-6087
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
The River Piddle, a small chalk stream in Dorset, supports a valuable ®shery for brown trout. It is also heavily utilised for water abstraction, with a licensed maximum daily quantity of 197 Ml/d, of which 43 . 5% can be taken from the groundwater. The largest licensed groundwater uses (by licensed volume) are public water supplies (PWS), of which there are four within the Piddle catchment.
Investigations into the impacts of the largest PWS abstraction, at Briantspuddle, on the brown trout population and ®sheries of the River Piddle demonstrated a spatial correlation between a zone of reduced river ¯ow and an area of low juvenile trout abundance, and a reduction in the period during which good quality trout ®shing was available.
Trout habitat was quanti®ed by applying the Physical Habitat Simulation System (PHABSIM) in conjunction with a groundwater model. The resultant habitat duration curves and habitat time-series corresponding with historical and naturalised (zero abstraction) ¯ow, indicated large habitat losses for juvenile trout.
Using discharge habitat relationships a preferred ¯ow regime for the river at Briantspuddle, designed to satisfy both ecological and recreational needs, was identi®ed. This ¯ow regime, which will be maintained by stream support, includes a `survival ¯ow' for juvenile trout during the critical summer low ¯ow period.