How Useful? Fish-Friendly Irrigation Guidelines for the Lower Mekong Lack Definition in Five Key Areas

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Aquatic Ecology
• Water Resource Management

Background:

• Irrigation infrastructure in the Mekong River impedes fish migration, impacting species lifecycles.
• Fishways are designed as fish-friendly structures to facilitate passage, with recent guidelines published to aid their development.
• The development process and clarity of purpose, audience, and impact of these guidelines remain unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the development of three fish-friendly guideline documents.
• To analyze document elements like purpose, audience, scope, and framing.
• To identify improvements for guideline utility and impact on fishway practice.

Main Methods:

• Structural criteria analysis of guideline documents.
• Qualitative data collection through 27 key informant interviews.
• Assessment of document elements including purpose, audience, scope, and framing.

Main Results:

• Guideline utility and impact can be enhanced by focusing on five key aspects.
• These aspects include: defining the target audience, engaging them in design, clarifying scope, providing specific recommendations, and including evaluation.
• Current guidelines may lack clarity in these areas, potentially limiting their effectiveness.

Conclusions:

• Improving guideline clarity and engagement can increase their perceived usefulness.
• Attention to the five identified aspects can lead to greater impact on water management practices for fish passage.
• This study provides a framework for developing more effective fishway guidelines.