Water management infrastructure may block fish migratory paths

To increase agricultural productivity and ensure food security, water management infrastructure is built in rivers and wetlands for irrigation. However, this infrastructure can block fish migration routes, threatening fisheries.

Nº 29

1) Myanmar

2) Thailand

  • Freshwater Resources
  • Agricultural Productivity Increase
  • Establishment of Water Management Infrastructure
some attempts made
past case
Region-1
Region-2
Region-3
Region-4
ongoing case
no attempts made

None

Water management infrastructure may block fish migratory paths

To increase agricultural productivity and ensure food security, water management infrastructure is built in rivers and wetlands for irrigation. However, this infrastructure can block fish migration routes, threatening fisheries.

1) As water control infrastructure is built to support irrigated agriculture, inland capture fisheries are threatened by blocking important migration routes. A decline in fish stocks is detrimental to Myanmar’s food security.

2) The Pak Mun dam in eastern Thailand was built in 1994 to provide hydroelectric power and irrigation. However, the dam significantly blocked the migratory routes of many fish species and disrupted their seasonal cycles. Fish ladders installed did not mitigate these negative effects, nor did stocking programmes undertaken by the Thai Department of Fisheries yield the desired effects.

  • The problem-shift had no effect on the efforts to address the initial problem
  • Singular (only one effect)

Collaboration between sectors in irrigation projects

1) Conallin J. C., Baumgartner L.J., Lunn Z., Akester M., Win N, Tun N.N., Nyunt M.M., Swe A.M., Chan N. Cowx I.G. (2019). Migratory fishes in Myanmar rivers and wetlands: challenges for sustainable development between irrigation water control infrastructure and sustainable inland capture fisheries. Marine and Freshwater Research 70(9) 1241-1253. https://doi.org/10.1071/MF19180

2) Roberts, T. R. (2001). On the river of no returns: Thailand’s Pak Mun Dam and its fish ladder. Natural History Bulletin of the Siam Society, 49(2), 189-230.

Conallin, J. C., Baumgartner, L. J., Lunn, Z., Akester, M., Win, N., Tun, N. N., … & Cowx, I. G. (2019). Migratory fishes in Myanmar rivers and wetlands: challenges for sustainable development between irrigation water control infrastructure and sustainable inland capture fisheries. Marine and Freshwater Research, 70(9), 1241-1253. https://doi.org/10.1071/MF19180

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