Eco-hydraulic survey of a highly regulated large Italian river

Invertebrate community structure and chemical parameters values monitored along the longitudinal profile of a regulated river are presented and discussed with reference to two different water abstraction schemes. In the upper part of the river water withdrawals are mainly operated for hydropower and don’t show remarkable seasonal differences; in the second part of the river water diversion is operated mainly in summer for fields irrigation. Although chemical parameters don’t show a clear pattern, these two reaches present consistent differences in terms of macroinvertebrate community structures which can be related to the two different water uses: hydroelectric and agricultural. The results suggest that in Adda river flow temporal variability could play an important role in structuring the invertebrate communities.