The Impact of Fine Sediment Accumulation on the Survival of Incubating Salmon Progeny: Implications for Sediment Management

This paper draws on results from a recent research programme on the impact of fine sediment transport through catchments to present a case for the development of new approaches to improving the quality of salmonid spawning and incubation habitats. To aid the development of these programmes, this paper summarises the mechanisms by which fine sediment accumulation influences the availability of oxygen (O2) to incubating salmon embryos. The results of the investigation indicate that incubation success is inhibited by: (i) the impact of fine sediment accumulation on gravel permeability and, subsequently, the rate of passage of oxygenated water through the incubation environment; (ii) reduced intragravel O2 concentrations that occur when O2 consuming material infiltrates spawning and incubation gravels; and (iii) the impact of fine particles (clay) on the exchange of O2 across the egg membrane. It is concluded that current granular measures of spawning and incubation habitat quality do not satisfactorily describe the complexity of factors influencing incubation success. Furthermore, an assessment of the trends in fine sediment infiltration indicates that only a small proportion of the total suspended sediment load infiltrates spawning and incubation gravels. This casts doubt over the ability of current catchment-based land use management strategies to adequately reduce fine sediment inputs.