Theoretical Ecology, Conservation Biology

Dr. Henriette Jager’s sustainability research seeks to quantify ecosystem services provided by energy alternatives (hydropower and bioenergy) so that they can be brought into the decision-making arena.

• Bioenergy: We are working at regional and local scales to find opportunities to maximize support for ecosystem services (e.g., wildlife habitat and improved water quality). At a regional scale, we are evaluating the potential for improving water quality by growing 2^nd generation perennial crops in the Mississippi River basin. We are also evaluating National-scale projections for biodiversity of bird species. At a farm scale, we will be evaluating practices that enhance ecosystem services.
• Hydropower: We are using population models to evaluate conservation practices (e.g., trap-and-transport operations, passage facilities, screens, and hatcheries). This research has produced practical guidelines for how far apart dams should be spaced, when and where to provide up- and down-stream fish passage, and whether hatcheries should collect larvae or broodstock adults to minimize genetic and demographic risks. A new effort is evaluating proposed recovery plan alternatives using a spatially explicit and individual-based demo-genetic model to evaluate a salmon ESU being considered for delisting under the Endangered Species Act.

Visit Google Scholar for more publications.

• Jager, HI, MJ Parsley, JJ Cech, Jr., RL McLaughlin, PS Forsythe, RF Elliott, and BM Pracheill. Accepted 2015. Reconnecting Fragmented Sturgeon Populations in North American Rivers. Fisheries.
• Jager, HI, RA Efroymson, J Opperman, and M Kelly. 2015. Spatial design principles for sustainable hydropower development in riverbasins. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 45: 808-816 (pdf) .
• Jager, HI, LM Baskaran, PE Schweizer, A Turhollow, CC Brandt, and R Srinivasan. 2015. Forecasting changes in water quality in rivers associated with growing biofuels in the Arkansas-White-Red river drainage, USA. Global Change Biology: Bioenergy. 7(4): 774-784 (pdf).
• Jager, HI. 2014. Thinking outside the channel: Timing pulse flows to benefit salmon via indirect pathways. Ecological Modelling 273: 117-127.(pdf).
• See https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Henriette_Jager