Stream barriers have been known to prevent habitat conductivity in otherwise healthy ecosystems. Barriers located on tributaries of the Hudson River are no exception. Many of these stream barriers are no longer providing the function (e.g., water reservoirs, flood control) that was intended when they were originally constructed. The main objective of this work was to assess the effect of stream barriers on water quality in two tributaries of the Hudson River. A secondary objective of this work was to evaluate whether stream barriers and/or water quality parameters have an effect on juvenile American eel populations, as the recent decline in eel populations has been linked to stream barriers and water pollution. For this work, water quality gages measuring dissolved oxygen, conductivity, nitrate, turbidity, temperature and depth were installed in two brackish tidal tributaries above and below stream barriers in Spring 2019 and 2020. Results showed that most water quality parameters were significantly different above and below the stream barriers in both tributaries. Juvenile American eel populations were then compared to the water quality parameters. The two tributaries had significantly different juvenile eel counts, indicating that both the type of stream barrier (e.g., dam) and specific water quality parameters (e.g., dissolved oxygen and conductivity) can affect habitats and eel populations. This data was used to develop a predictive tool that can be extrapolated to other sites with stream barriers and juvenile eel monitoring programs.

Effect of Stream Barriers on Water Quality and Juvenile American Eel Populations in Brackish Tidal Wetlands on the Hudson River, NY

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[Paper Proceedings](https://doi.org/10.1061/9780784483466)