Small artificial impoundments have big implications for hydrology and freshwater biodiversity
Open accessPreprint — published as 10.1002/fee.2454 · Paper page
Abstract
Headwater streams are critical for freshwater ecosystems. Global and continental studies consistently show major dams as dominant sources of hydrological stress threatening biodiversity in the world’s major rivers, but cumulative impacts from small artificial impoundments concentrated in headwater streams have rarely been acknowledged. Using the Murray Darling River basin (Australia)and the Arkansas River basin (USA) as case studies, we examine the hydrological impact of small artificial impoundments. The extent of their influence is significant, altering hydrology in 280 - 380% more waterways when compared to major dams alone. Hydrological impacts are concentrated in smaller streams (catchment area < 100 km2), raising concerns that the often diverse and highly endemic biota found in these systems may be under threat. Adjusting existing biodiversity planning and management approaches to address the cumulative effects of many small and widely distributed artificial impoundments presents a rapidly emerging challenge for ecologically sustainable water management.
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“Several studies have shown that the cumulative effects of multiple small barriers in a catchment can be similar to or more detrimental than those of a single large barrier (Li et al. 2021; Morden et al. 2022), highlighting the importance of reporting barriers structural characteristics in studies.”
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“While farm dams, including surface water harvesting infrastructure, have relatively small capacity individually, their abundance and widespread distribution have substantial cumulative impacts in the MDB (Morden et al. 2022; Robertson et al. 2023; Schreider et al. 2002).”
Self-citationZhang, F., Dong, L., Wang, L.-F., Wu, W., Li, Y., & Lin, L. (2026) · Journal of Environmental Science · doi:10.1016/j.jes.2026.01.030 · Cited by 1
Bonjour, S., Roberts, J. J., Mills, M. A., Walters, D. M., Mueller, A. T., Fischer, N. D., Trimbath, R. J., Wagner, C. P., Jenkins, P. I., & Acre, M. R. (2026) · Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences · doi:10.1139/cjfas-2025-0330 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Pisaniello, J. D., & Tingey-Holyoak, J. (2024) · Journal of Cleaner Production · doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2024.143707 · Cited by 1
Assessing water diversion impacts on the fish community size structure in headwater stream stretches
Gurí, R., Benejam, L., Ordeix, M., & Arranz, I. (2024) · Hydrobiologia · doi:10.1007/s10750-024-05507-4 · Cited by 1
“Colors on distributions indicate the number of electrofishing passes (from one to four passes; from blue, yellow, orange to brown, respectively) when fish individuals were caught 2010; Kibler & Tullos, 2013; Timpe & Kaplan, 2017; Jumani et al., 2020; Morden et al., 2022).”
Quantifying evaporation depth from on-farm storages using water-level observations
Xu, J., Western, A. W., Ryu, D., & Scobie, M. (2026) · Agricultural Water Management · doi:10.1016/j.agwat.2026.110721
Yi, C.-F., Sun, J.-R., Xu, N., Cheng, H.-Y., Baldan, D., Galib, S. M., Jutagate, T., Li, H., Kashmi, N. S., & Olden, J. (2026) · Ecological Informatics · doi:10.1016/j.ecoinf.2026.104093
Self-citationSmall Reservoirs Offer a New Perspective on Flood Reduction in Large Basins
Patel, K., Haider, M. R., Rajib, A., Kao, S.-C., Gao, H.-L., Dahl, T., & Singh, D. (2026) · Earth's Future · doi:10.1029/2025ef006830
“Although small reservoirs have limited storage capacities, their abundance and widespread distribution across landscapes can lead to significant cumulative impacts (Ayalew et al., 2017; Morden et al., 2022).”
Davenport, G., Adams, G. L., Morrill, D. P., Rezac, C. R., Gavrielides, G., Main, J., & Adams, S. R. (2026) · Hydrobiologia · doi:10.1007/s10750-026-06357-y
Lechevallier, H., Dagès, C., Burger-Leenhardt, D., Magand, C., & Molénat, J. (2026) · Hydrology and Earth System Sciences · doi:10.5194/hess-30-3853-2026
“Depending on the study context (e.g., location in the world or size of the study catchment), they can be defined based on a maximum surface (e.g. in Morden et al., 2022) or a maximum volume (e.g. in Ayalew et al., 2017).”
Improving restoration heuristics to support anadromous fish passage
Jardine, S. L., Blair, L., Burch, C. A., Cooke, A., Fonner, R., Holland, D. S., Kahn, J., Lewis-Smith, C., Rogers, L. W., Scheuerell, M., et al. (2026) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0348150
“While hydropower dams contribute to river fragmentation [7,8], smaller barriers such as culverts, fords, and artificial impoundments are far more numerous in many river systems [2,9,10].”
Yonas, M. W., Yao, X.-X., Luo, X.-J., Hassan, A., Song, Z.-H., Adeyeye, O., Nwankwegu, A., Long, L.-H., Yang, G.-L., Huang, W., et al. (2026) · INLAND WATERS · doi:10.1080/20442041.2026.2657814
Zhang, F., Pan, X., Wu, W., Tan, W., Guo, J., Wang, L., & Lin, L. (2026) · Journal of Water Process Engineering · doi:10.1016/j.jwpe.2026.109809
Closing Data Gaps to Improve River Barrier Management in South and Southeast Asia
Sun, J.-R., Lucas, M., Olden, J., & He, D.-M. (2026) · WIREs Water · doi:10.1002/wat2.70055
“This is despite the major impacts that numerous small barriers have on river habitats and biodiversity (Belletti et al. 2020; Morden et al. 2022; Sun, Baldan, et al. 2025).”
Self-citationFrom local to cumulative: How barriers and reservoirs affect river macroinvertebrate traits.
Labat, F. (2025) · Science of the Total Environment · doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.181138
Nhampossa, J. A., Marques, G., Pinhati, F. S. C., & Rodrigues, L. (2025) · Journal of water resources planning and management · doi:10.1061/jwrmd5.wreng-6859
Morden, R., Horne, A., Nathan, R., Bond, N. R., & Fowler, K. (2025) · Journal of Hydrology · doi:10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133583
Self-citationOosterhof, C., Gasnier, N., Luque, S. P., & Tanguy, Y. (2023) · IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium · doi:10.1109/igarss52108.2023.10281847
Gerfand, B., Gaucherand, S., Berteloot, P., Tixier, L., Evette, A., & Arthaud, F. (2026) · Ecological Engineering: The Journal of Ecotechnology · doi:10.1016/j.ecoleng.2026.108018
- Authors
- Morden, R., Horne, A., Bond, N., Nathan, R., & Olden, J.
- Affiliations
- The University of Melbourne (AU)
- University of Washington (US)
- Corresponding author
- Morden, Robert
- Venue
- Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment
- Publisher
- California Digital Library (CDL)
- Published
- 2022-01-31
- Volume
- 20
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 141-146
- ISSN
- 1540-9295 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W4226133866
- Cited by
- 63
- References
- 64
- Citations by year
- 2026: 18 · 2025: 13 · 2024: 13 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 7
- FWCI
- 7.60
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- cc-by-nc
- Locations
- Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- EarthArXiv (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- Minerva Access (University of Melbourne) (submittedVersion)
- Griffith Research Online (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- La Trobe University
- Funders
- Australian Government
- Australian Research Council (DE180100550)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Nature and Landscape Conservation › Fish Ecology and Management Studies
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Freshwater macroinvertebrate diversity and ecology
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Ocean Engineering › Water resources management and optimization
- Keywords
- headwater streams, hydrological impacts, freshwater biodiversity, cumulative effects, dams, Arkansas River Basin, endemic species, water management, biodiversity planning
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