Rosa Cox, 2026

Thesis:

Short term trends in benthic macroinvertebrate communities downstream of Iron Gate Dam before and during Klamath Dam removal

Rosa’s research focused on the short-term impacts of dam removal on aquatic food webs in the Klamath River.  Four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River were removed between the summer of 2023 and fall of 2024. This landmark effort was to improve downstream water quality and restore anadromous fish passage to ~420 miles of river habitat above the dams. The dam removal process released substantial amounts of fine sediment and created short-term impacts to benthic macroinvertebrate (BMI) communities and food availability for juvenile salmonids downstream of the dam sites. Results of this study are intended to inform future dam removal efforts in coastal rivers.