Research on the Upstream Passage of Juvenile Salmon through Culverts: Retrofit Baffles

This report provides data from biological tests conducted November 2005 through January 2006 by Battelle for the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) at the Culvert Test Bed Facility located at the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) Skookumchuck Hatchery near Tenino, Washington. Fish tests evaluated passage success in a 40-ft corrugated culvert without baffles or with three weir baffles at one culvert slope (1.14%) and over five flows (1.5, 3, 6, 8, and 12 cfs). The 3- and 8-cfs flows were tested under an additional backwatering condition. The relationships between natural logarithm of passage success of juvenile coho salmon (94 mm to 104 mm) and culvert discharge were statistically significant and curvilinear for all three configurations. For the configuration without baffles, passage success was about 40% at 1.5 cfs, increased to about 70% at 3 cfs, and then decreased to less than 10% at 12 cfs. The curves for configurations without baffles and with baffles and elevated backwatering condition did not differ significantly. Both these curves were significantly greater than the curve for the configuration with baffles and standard backwatering condition. Backwatering influences passage success through baffled culverts and needs to be considered as an experimental variable in future studies. Behavioral observations indicate the fish used low-velocity pathways and that these pathways differed between the baffled and unbaffled conditions and perhaps differed with flow for the baffled condition.

• Record URL:
  http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/research/reports/fullreports/644.1.pdf
• 
• Record URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/16366
• Corporate Authors:

  Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

  3180 George Washington Way
  Richland, WA  United States  99354

  Federal Highway Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Pearson, W H
  • Southard, S L
  • May, C W
  • Skalski, J R
  • Townsend, R L
  • Horner-Devine, A R
  • Thurman, D R
  • Hotchkiss, R H
  • Morrison, R R
  • Richmond, M C
  • Deng, D
• Publication Date: 2006-4

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: CD-ROM
• Edition: Final Report
• Features: CD-ROM; Figures; Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 60p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Biological activity; Culverts; Fishes; Research reports; Salmon
• Uncontrolled Terms: Backwatering; Baffles; Coho salmon; Fish passage
• Geographic Terms: Tenino (Washington)
• Subject Areas: Bridges and other structures; Design; Energy; Environment; Highways; I15: Environment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01031645
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: WA-RD 644.1, PNWD-3672
• Contract Numbers: WSDOT Agreement No. GCA2677
• Files: NTL, TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Aug 24 2006 4:28PM