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Modeling in a three-dimensional world: whitewater park hydraulics and their impact on aquatic habitat in Colorado

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dc.contributor.authorKolden, Eleanor, author
dc.contributor.authorBledsoe, Brian P., advisor
dc.contributor.authorWohl, Ellen, committee member
dc.contributor.authorGrigg, Neil S., committee member
dc.date.accessioned2007-01-03T05:01:58Z
dc.date.available2007-01-03T05:01:58Z
dc.date.issued2013
dc.description.abstractWhitewater parks (WWPs) are becoming more popular in Colorado rivers and streams, but the effects of WWPs on aquatic habitat and fish passage are poorly understood. This study investigated the use of a three-dimensional (3-D) hydrodynamic model (FLOW-3D®) for assessing effects of WWPs on aquatic habitat. The objective of this study was to compare modeled habitat quality to actual fish biomass and to examine the utility of 3-D modeling (vs. two-dimensional (2-D) modeling) in this hydraulically-complex system. Two sections of a small river in Colorado were modeled: one natural section, and one section containing a WWP with three engineered drop structures. A 2-D habitat suitability analysis for juvenile and adult brown and rainbow trout, longnose dace, and longnose sucker predicted higher habitat quality in the WWPs than the natural reaches for adult brown and rainbow trout at some flow rates, while in-stream surveys showed higher fish biomass per volume in the natural pools. All hydraulic metrics (depth, depth-averaged velocity, turbulent kinetic energy (TKE), 2-D vorticity, and 3-D vorticity) had higher magnitudes in the WWP pools than in the natural pools. In the WWP pools, 2-D model results did not describe the spatial distribution of flow characteristics or the magnitude of variables as well as 3-D results. This thesis supports the use of 3-D modeling for complex flow found in WWPs, but other projects should be evaluated case-by-case to determine if the simplified 2-D rendering of flow characteristics is acceptable. For 3-D modeling to be widely useful, improved understanding of linkages between 3-D aquatic habitat quality and hydraulic descriptors such as TKE, vorticity, and velocity is needed.
dc.format.mediumborn digital
dc.format.mediummasters theses
dc.identifierKolden_colostate_0053N_11653.pdf
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10217/79069
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherColorado State University. Libraries
dc.relation.ispartof2000-2019
dc.rightsCopyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright.
dc.subjecthydraulic model
dc.subjectwhitewater park
dc.subjectvorticity
dc.subjectpool hydraulics
dc.subjectfish habitat
dc.subjecthabitat suitability
dc.titleModeling in a three-dimensional world: whitewater park hydraulics and their impact on aquatic habitat in Colorado
dc.typeText
dcterms.rights.dplaThis Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights (https://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/). You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
thesis.degree.disciplineCivil and Environmental Engineering
thesis.degree.grantorColorado State University
thesis.degree.levelMasters
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science (M.S.)

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