Study examines turbine effects on Yukon River fish
August 31, 2010
Carin Stephens
907-322-8730
8/31/10
A University of Alaska Fairbanks fisheries scientist has teamed up with Alaska Power and Telephone to study how a new power-generating turbine affects fish in the Yukon River.
So far, the news looks good for the fish.
“In the brief testing that we have been able to accomplish, we have no indication that the turbine has killed or even injured any fish,” said Andrew Seitz, project leader and assistant professor of fisheries.
Alaska Power and Telephone installed the in-stream turbine near Eagle, Alaska this summer. They are testing its effectiveness as a power source for the village. A parallel project led by Seitz is studying the device’s potential effects on fish moving through the river channel. Graduate student Parker Bradley and research technician Mark Evans have been in Eagle conducting the fisheries research since May.
The turbine is 16-feet wide and 8-feet tall. It’s suspended from an anchored pontoon barge in the deepest and fastest part of the river. The turbine has four blades that spin at about 22 revolutions per minute.
“The community of Eagle, residents along the Yukon River and Alaska Power and Telephone have all been very supportive of the fish studies,” said Seitz. “Everyone’s biggest consideration is the fish.”
Seitz and Bradley are using nets to capture fish at the turbine site and near the shore. The captured fish are identified, counted, measured and released alive back into the river. This information allows the scientists to determine the path downstream-migrating fish—such as juvenile salmon—take through the river channel. It also allows them to determine how many of the different fish species are in the channel and when they migrate.
“This data allows us to determine the relative likelihood of a fish to pass through the turbine,” said Seitz.
If a fish does pass through the turbine, Seitz and Bradley examine it for general health and indication of injury. Seitz says that preliminary results show that very few fish are passing through the turbine and those that do are not showing any signs of injury.
The project was funded by UAF and Alaska Power and Telephone via grant funding secured through Alaska’s Denali Commission.
About the UAF School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences
The UAF School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences conducts world-class marine and fisheries research, education and outreach across Alaska, the Arctic and Antarctic. 60 faculty scientists and 150 students are engaged in building knowledge about Alaska and the world's coastal and marine ecosystems. SFOS is headquartered at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and serves the state from facilities located in Seward, Juneau, Anchorage and Kodiak.
ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Andrew Seitz, project lead and assistant professor of fisheries, 907-474-5254 or via e-mail aseitz@sfos.uaf.edu. Mark McCready, director of marketing at AP&T, 360-385-1733 ext. 117 or mark.m@aptalaska.com.
ON THE WEB: http://www.sfos.uaf.edu
NOTE TO EDITORS: Contact Marmian Grimes at marmian.grimes@alaska.edu for high-resolution photos.
CS/8-31-10/031-11
Letters from the field
June 21, 2010
Hey John and Bob,
Catches in last weeks sampling peaked early in the week, then slowly declined as the week progressed. The river peaked in discharge about the same time as our catch rates peaked. The river has dropped about 3 or so feet since the 15th, and our catch rates seem to correspond with the hydrograph. We tried using a different style of fyke net which has just one wing instead of two on the 17th and 18th. It was a little difficuilt for just Mark and I to handle, so we decided to cease using it. Also, it caught mostly lake chubs which is why on those two days there was a spike in lake chub catches. The AP&T crew is returning this week to work on setting the pontoon and turbine so hopefully we will start fishing in the middle of the river soon. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. Thanks!
-Parker
June 28, 2010
Hey John and Bob,
Sampling is still going well here in Eagle. The chinook fry and chum smolts we are catching are getting big and looking really healthy. We had a large spike in UI Larval catches on the 25th. The hydrograph hit a low on the afternoon of the 22nd and peaked the morning of the 26th. On this weeks spread sheet, I included the number of fyke net sets we did for each day, mainly because we caught just a few fish on the 24th, but only did 2 sets. We were on debris watch most of the day while AP&T was working on getting the pontoon set in the water. AP&T got the turbine spinning, but we are still waiting to fish off the barge since they are still working on it. Hopefully in the next day or two, we should be fishing in the middle of the channel. If you have any questions, let me know. Thanks!!
-Parker
July 6, 2010
Hey Bob and John,
Last week catch rates were much higher than usual. We saw higher numbers of almost every species, especially suckers and little whitefish larval. The river peaked late Wednesday night and debris was pretty severe. The turbine was in the water for only a short period of time and had to be removed because damage from the debris. It's hard to say when we will be able to fish in the current from the turbine, but it won't be until for at least for 2-3 weeks which is when the AP&T crew plans to return. If you have any questions, please let me know. Thanks!
-Parker
July 11, 2010
Hey Bob and John,
Sampling has still been going well here in Eagle. Catches were lower this week than they were last week, probably as a result of the river discharge decreasing. Please let me know if you have any questions.
-Parker
July 18, 2010
Hey Bob and John,
This week was pretty hectic for sampling. We received lots of rain last Sunday the 11th and the river rose 4 feet on Monday. As a result, the heavy debris made it difficult to fish some sites. Our catch rates of chum smolts have really decreased while our catch rates of suckers and whitefish larval have remained steady. Also as you may know, the Taylor Highway was washed out from the rain and will be closed for an unknown amount of time. The AP&T crew was planning on returning today to start work on installing the turbine again, but it looks like they will be further delayed until the road opens up and they can drive equipment in. If you have any questions, please let me know.
Thanks!
-Parker
July 25, 2010
Hey Bob and John,
Sampling has still been going well here in Eagle. Catch rates were a little lower this week than last week, until the river came up Friday. We had an increase catch rate of mostly suckers when the river rose. We've been catching fewer and fewer chum smolts, chinook fry and UI whitefish larval. I believe AP&T is planning on returning this week to work on putting the turbine back in the water, but a lot will depend on the weather and on road repairs. The highway is still closed, but if weather cooperates, they hope to have it open soon. I will keep you all updated whenever we begin sampling from the turbine. If you have any questions please let me know. Thanks!
-Parker
August 1, 2010
Hey Bob and John,
This past week of sampling, catches mostly consisted of suckers and little arctic grayling larvae. The river discharge has been steadily declining throughout the week and we didn't catch much else of any other species. AP&T is still delayed from the Taylor Highway being closed so I will let y'all know when progress on the turbine begins again. Let me know if you have any questions!
-Parker
August 8, 2010
Hey Bob and John,
Catches this week were similar to last week, consisting mostly of little grayling larval and suckers. The river was decreasing in discharge all week until it rained late in the week and began rising Friday and peaked Saturday evening. The rain re-washed out the Taylor Highway, but luckily AP&T crews were able to return before it closed. They are working on putting the turbine in right now so I'm keeping my fingers crossed we can sample from it soon. If you all have any questions, let me know.
-Parker
August 15, 2010
Hey Bob and John,
During our sampling last week we caught large numbers of grayling and not much of anything else. The turbine is now up and running and everything is going well. We started sampling behind the turbine yesterday and during one of our first test sets we caught one chinook fry which was in good condition. We haven't caught any other fish behind the turbine. We are still refining our methods but our sampling gear is working well and seems to be holding up in the strong current. The difficult part we haven't figured out yet is how to sample 4-8 ft deep. We can sample 0-4 ft deep just fine. Let me know if you all have any questions. Thanks!
-Parker