La Grande 2 Reservoir

An aerial view of the the reservoir

Photo.

Photo: M. Kislalioglu and F. Berkes

A. LOCATION

Quebec, Canada.
53:0-54:0N, 75:5-78:0W; 173.5 m above sea level.

B. DESCRIPTION

La Grande 2 (LG2) Reservoir is a man-made lake, created as part of the La Grande Complex (James Bay) Hydroelectric Project. "Located some 1,000 km north of Montreal, three dams were constructed on La Grande River, starting with LG2, the second largest hydroelectric power station in Canada at 5.328 MW. An additional powerhouse (LG2A), constructed to meet peak power requirements, will increase the installed capacity to 7,326 MW, the largest in Canada. Two major diversions channel extra water from other rivers into La Grande through Opinaca and Caniapiscau Reservoirs" (1).
La Grande 2 Reservoir was initiated in November 1978 and took one year to fill. It was constructed by "Societe d'Energie de la Baie James", a crown corporation of Province of Quebec as part of a $ 16 billion (Can $) development project, called La Grande Complex Phase 1.
There is one town, Radisson, near the reservoir. A Cree Amerindian settlement, Chissasibi, is about 100 km by road. The area was used in the past for hunting, trapping and fishing by the Cree people. Hunting and trapping has continued, but the reservoir fisheries were closed down after 1985 due to high mercury levels in fish (2). LG2 dam and the powerhouse is the largest tourist attraction in Northern Quebec (Q).

C. PHYSICAL DIMENSIONS

Surface area [km2]	2,136-2,835*1
Volume [km3]	42.3-61.7*1
Maximum depth [m]	137
Mean depth [m]	21.8
Water level	Regulated
Normal range of annual water
level fluctuation [m]	8.7
Length of shoreline [km]	4,550 (3)
Residence time [yr]	0.5 (4)
Catchment area [km2]
(La Grande River)	97,643*2
(La Grande Complex)	176,810*3

D. PHYSIOGRAPHIC FEATURES

D1 GEOGRAPHICAL
Sketch map: Fig. NAM-28-0l.
Bathymetric map: Fig. NAM-28-02.
Number of outflowing rivers and channels (name): 1 (La Grande R.).

D2 CLIMATIC
Climatic data at Eastmain*, 1951-1980 (3a)
Mean temp. [deg C]


Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Ann.

-20.4	-19.7	-12.9	-2.7	5.1	11.3	13.7	13.0	9.2	3.8	-4.1	-15.5	-1.56

Precipitation [mm]


Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Ann.

29	16	24	25	40	51	95	73	80	81	70	44	627

* <200 km southwest of the basin.
Solar radiation (Nitchequon*)[MJ m-2 day-1]


Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Ann.

3.7	7.8	13.0	18.8	19.6	19.0	17.0	14.5	9.3	5.2	3.3	2.7	11.2

* 350 km to the east of LG2 Reservoir.
Water temperature [deg C](3)
The exit of LG2*, 1980-1985
[m]


Depth	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec

S*2	0.7	0.7	0.7	0.6	1.3	3.0	6.0	8.0	8.7	7.5	4.5	1.0

*1 Water intake depth, ca. 20 m. *2 Surface.
Freezing period (1979-1985): 6 December-9 June (3).
Mixing type: Dimictic.
Notes on water mixing and thermocline formation Thermal profile in Fig. NAM-28-03 (3).

E. LAKE WATER QUALITY (Q)

Mean summer levels of water quality parameters as measured before (1978), during (1979) and after (1980-1984) the filling of La Grande 2 Reservoir at station Toto and in the La Grande Riviere (1984)(2)


								La Grande
Parameters	'78	'79	'80	'81	'82	'83	'84	Riviere '84

True color	55	50	52	49	46	43	42	42
[Hazen unit]
Turbidity [NTU]	1.32	0.97	0.90	1.11	1.26	1.16	0.97	1.94
Transparency [m]	1.9	2.0	1.8	1.9	1.8	1.7	2.0	1.9
Temperature [¡¦]	11.2	12.6	10.6	11.3	12.5	11.6	11.7	10.7
Dissolved oxygen	9.9	9.0	8.0	7.3	8.4	8.9	9.1	11.9
[mg l-1]
02 saturation [%] 91	86	73	66	80	83	84	103
pH	6.9	6.7	6.3	6.4	6.4	6.4	6.4	6.5
Conductivity	29	22	22	23	18	17	16	14
[micro S cm-1]
Chloride	9.8	1.4	1.1	1.0	0.8	0.7	0.7	0.3
[mg l-1]
Bicarbonate	10.0	6.7	6.0	7.0	5.1	4.8	4.2	4.0
[mg l-1]
Sulfate	3.1	2.9	1.6	0.8	1.7	2.1	1.6	2.8
[mg l-1]
Sodium	1.8	1.6	1.2	1.1	1.0	0.9	0.9	0.8
[mg l-1]
Potassium	0.3	0.4	0.7	0.8	0.7	0.5	0.4	0.3
[mg l-1]
Magnesium	0.61	0.40	0.48	0.52	0.47	0.41	0.41	0.36
[mg l-1]
Calcium	3.5	3.3	1.8	2.2	1.9	1.7	1.7	1.2
[mg l-1]
Manganese	0.02	0.03	0.07	0.06	0.05	0.04	0.03	0.02
[mg l-1]
Total iron	0.29	0.22	0.36	0.36	0.44	0.29	0.28	0.19
[mg l-1]
Total Kjeldahl	0.29	0.21	0.28	0.28	0.28	0.30	0.26	0.16
nitrogen [mg l-1]
Total phosphorus	10	15	19	20	23	17	15	8
micro g l-1]
Total inorganic	2.1	1.8	2.4	2.7	2.1	1.9	1.6	1.2
carbon [mg l-1]
Total organic	11.4	13.2	10.1	9.0	8.6	8.2	8.2	5.9
carbon [mg l-1]
Silica	3.4	2.3	2.5	1.3	0.7	0.9	0.5	2.2
[mg l-1]
Chlorophyll a	2.36	1.13	1.21	3.17	3.68	3.93	4.21	1.54
[micro g l-1]
Phaeopigments	0.45	0.73	0.53	1.63	3.26	2.12	2.70	0.62
[micro g l-1]

Water quality of surface waters (0-10 m) at the end of the ice-cover period

Station Toto only


Parameters	'78	'79	'80	'81	'82	'83	'84

True Color [Hazen unit]	60	80	80	60	100	50	50
Turbidity [NTU]	1.40	0.79	0.96	1.2	3.1	0.54	2.2
Temperature [deg C]	3.7	2.1	4.5	1.5	1.6	1.4	1.6
Dissolved oxygen [mg l-1]	8.2	10.7	2.9	3.3	2.2	5.8	6.9
02 saturation [%]	63	79	23	24	17	42	50
pH	6.4	6.5	5.6	6.1	6.0	5.8	5.9
Conductivity [micro S cm-1]	32	33	23	25	30	21	17
Chloride [mg l-1]	0.2	1.1	1.2	1.6	1.3	0.8	0.8
Bicarbonate [mg l-1]	12.0	11.0	5.0	9.0	13.7	5.5	4.3
Sulfate [mg l-1]	3.0	3.0	1.5	2.0	1.5	2.5	2.0
Manganese [mg l-1]	0.02	-	0.28	0.15	0.20	0.08	0.06
Total iron [mg l-1]	0.37	-	1.04	0.73	0.86	0.38	0.44
Ammonia nitrogen [mg l-1]	0.01	0.02	-	0.02	0.05	0.02	0.02
Nitrate and nitrite [mg l-1]	0.12	0.17	0.02	0.02	0.02	0.11	0.05
Total Kjeldahl-N [mg l-1]	0.25	0.25	0.22	0.28	0.62	0.22	0.28
Total phosphorus [micro g l-1]	7	-	15	26	49	16	15
Total organic carbon [mg l-1] 3.0	3.6	-	6.0	8.6	4.7	3.4
Total inorganic 10.8	12.8	-	9.2	11.1	7.1	8.6
carbon [mg l-1]
Silica [mg l-1]	4.4	4.9	2.6	2.3	1.3	1.8	-

Levels of total phosphorus [micro g l-1] and their variations measured in reservoirs at their most remote stations (2)


	0	0	1	2	3	4	5

La Grande 2 Reservoir	8	12	17	16	15	13	12
Variations	-	4	9	8	7	5	4
Toto station	9	15	19	20	23	17	15
Variations	-	6	10	11	14	8	6

E10 PAST TRENDS: Fig. NAM-28-04, 05 and 06.

F. BIOLOGICAL FEATURES

F1 FLORA
Emerged macrophytes
Aquatic vegetation not well developed due to water level fluctuation (3). Typical vegetation profile among James Bay area rivers before impoundment given in Fig. NAM-28-07 (6); for detailed species list, see (7).
Phytoplankton
List of dominant species before impoundment are given in the following list; for detailed species list, see (7).
Relative abundance of principal phytoplankton species found in James Bay Area in 1973 (6)


Classes and Species	Percentage by number of cells [%]
Diatomophyta

Asterionella formosa		6.7
Eunotia pectinalis		2.5
Melosira granulata		1.0
M. italica var. subarctica		0.9
M. italica		4.1
Tabellaria flocculosa		8.5
T. flocculosa (f. courte)		1.4
T. flocculosa (f. longue)		10.2
T. fenestra		0.2
	Subtotal	35.7
Chrysophyta
Dinobryon bavaricum		9.6
D. bavarium var. vanhoffenii		10.4
D. divergens		1.4
	Subtotal	21.3
Zygophyta
Spondylosium planum		0.4
Mougeotia sp.		0.5
	Subtotal	0.9
Cyanophyta
Anabaena flos-aquae		5.1
Aphanothece clathrata		2.2
Aphanothece sp.		13.4
Coelosphaerium kuetzingii		1.3
Microcystis aeruginosa		0.9
M. minutissima		3.9
Merismopedia glauca		1.2
	Subtotal	28.0
Others	Subtotal	14.0
	Total	100.0

F2 FAUNA
Zooplankton
List of dominant species before impoundment are given in the following table; for detailed species list, see (7).
Relative abundance and occurrence of principal zooplankton species in the James Bay Area in 1973-74 (6)


Rank	Species

1	Bosmina longirostris
2	Leptodiaptomus minutus
3	Diacyclops bicuspidatus thomasi
4	Holopedium gibberum
5	Kellicottia longispina
6	Conochilus unicornis
7	Epischura lacustris
8	Dapnnia longiremis
9	Leptodiaptomus sicilis
10	Aglaodiaptomus spatulocrenatus
11	Cyclops scutifer
12	Keratella cochlearis

Frequency [% number] of occurrence of benthic organisms in basket samplers in La Grande 2 Reservoir and at its control station (2)


		La Grande 2 region
	Taxa	Reservoir	Control station
		2nd yr.	3rd yr.

Nematods	-	2	17
Oligochaetes	44	89	79
Leeches	17	24	79
Gastropods	5	2	100
Pelecypods	5	5	54
Water mites	24	50	71
Amphipods	5	22	83
Mayflies	5	20	83
Dragonflies	-	-	8
Stoneflies	-	2	17
Bugs	2	22	-
Neuroptera	-	-	-
Beetles	10	26	33
Caddisflies	7	30	96
Flies
Midges	98	100	100
Others	17	7	29

Fish
Numbers by species in the basin of La Grande River before impoundment are given in the following table. Relative abundance of fish species after impoundment is shown in Fig. NAM-28-08.
Number of fish captured in the basin of La Grande River in 1973-1976 before flooding of reservoir (6)


	Ft. George	LG1	LG2	LG3

Acipenser fulvescens*	1	15	60	5
Salvelinus fontinalis*	206	250	489	56
S. namaycush*	-	-	62	116
Coregonus artedii*	3,055	44	340	14
C. clupeaformis*	3,332	606	743	286
Prosopium cylindraceum	1,144	32	21	27
Esox lucius*	504	242	508	66
Couesius plumbeus	1,130	208	32	10
Notropis hudsonius	31	21	52	-
Rhinichthys cataractae	1	1	-	-
Semotilus margarita	7	-	34	-
Catostomus catostomus*	3,406	365	227	131
C. commersoni*	713	110	706	162
Catostomus sp.	383	518	75	-
Lota lota*	79	18	30	6
Culaea inconstans	22	67	52	-
Gasterosteus aculeatus	10,540	4	1,109	-
Pungitius pungitius	1,396	13	182	9
Percopsis omiscomaycus	575	5	104	-
Perca flavescens	-	2	124	-
Percina caprodes	-	-	1	-
Stizostedion vitreum*	227	187	676	157
Cottus bairdi	175	-	31	-
C. cognatus	-	1	3	-
Myoxocephalus quadricornis	23	-	-	-
Total	26,933	2,709	5,661	1,045

* Economically important.

F3 PRIMARY PRODUCTION RATE
Primary productivity [g C m-2 yr-1] observed in La Grande 2 Reservoir and at the control station, Detcheverry (a natural lake in adjacent area unaffected by flooding)


	1981	1982	1984

Bereziuk (LG2)	63.32	60.86	20.99
Control station	13.42	19.94	7.03
Bereziuk: control station (ratio)	4.72	3.05	2.99
Years of flooding	3	4	6

F4 BIOMASS
Zooplankton: Fig. NAM-28-09.
Benthos: Fig. NAM-28-09.

F5 FISHERY PRODUCTS (1)
Annual fish catch
No commercial catch. Sport-fishery data not available. Subsistence fishery reduced to nil after 1985 due to high mercury levels.

F6 PAST TRENDS
Past trends in fish production (catch per unit of effort of experimental gill nets) is shown in Fig. NAM-28-10.

F7 NOTES ON THE REMARKABLE CHANGES OF BIOTA IN THE LAKE IN RECENT YEARS
Changes in biota still relatively rapid due to recent formation of the reservoir.

G. SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONDITIONS (10)

G1 LAND USE IN THE CATCHMENT AREA
1976


	Area [%]

Natural landscape*	100
Agricultural land	0
Residential area	0
Total	100

Types of important forest or scrub vegetation
The area is dominated by Picea mariana forest with an undergrowth of Ledum groenlandicum in the lowland area, and by Pinus banksiana with under-carpet of Cladonia lichen on the stony ridges. To the south of the La Grande River, stands of P. mariana with an under.carpet of lichen cover the hilly uplands. There are large areas of scattered muskeg and bog through-out this region. Stands of closed-canopy forest, composed of predominately coniferous trees line some of the rivers and lakes on well-drained land (8, 9). In terms of ecological regions, the area belongs to the Taiga shield ecozone of Canada.

G2 INDUSTRIES IN THE CATCHMENT AREA AND THE LAKE (10)


	Gross product	No.of	Main products or
	per year	persons	major industries
	(US$)	engaged

Primary industry
Hydro	1,000 million <	300	Electricity
-electricity
Fur production	1 million >	20	Animal skins

Number of domestic animals in the catchment area: Caribou.

G3 POPULATION IN THE CATCHMENT AREA
None in the catchment area. The town of Radission (about 2,000 in 1988) is at the edge of basin.

H. LAKE UTILIZATION

H1 LAKE UTILIZATION
Source of water (to temporary camps of hunters and fishermen), hydroelectric generation, navigation and transportation (canoes and small motorboats), sightseeing and tourism (no. of visitors in 1988: estimated 5,000) and recreation (hunting, swimming, sport-fishing, boating).

I. DETERIORATION OF LAKE ENVIRONMENTS AND HAZARDS

I1 ENHANCED SILTATION (3)
No data on rate of sedimentation in reservoir. At the discharge of LG2 dam, La Grande River water carries a suspended sediment load of 10 mg l-1 annual average. There is concern about river-bed erosion downstream from LG2 dam.

I2 TOXIC CONTAMINATION
Present status: Serious.
Supplementary notes
There has been a major mercury increase in reservoirs of the La Grande Complex as a result of impoundment. Concentrations of this heavy metal increased markedly since flooding of reservoirs. Mercury has been measured in La Grande 2 predatory and non.predatory fishes at concentrations up to 0.5 to 3.0 ppm (on wet weight basis, muscle tissue). In Canada, the allowable level for mercury in fish for human consumption is 0.5 ppm. In LG2, all fisheries have been closed. The effect is not temporary. "During the sixth year of the impoundment, mean concentrations were 4 to 5 times higher on all species studied" (2). The highest levels were found in walleye (Stizostedion vitreum) and northern pike (Esox lucius), thus ruining the recreational fishery potential of the reservoir. No deleterious health effects of consuming fish have been detected in the native Amerindians of the area. Since the end of 1985, these people have been avoiding fish from the area of reservoirs (l). While the source of this mercury is controversial, presumably it comes from natural sources; that is, rocks of the Canadian Shield. There may be some airborne sources of mercury as well; role of acidification in increased uptake of mercury by biota is being investigated.

I3 EUTROPHICATION
Nuisance caused by eutrophication: None.
Supplementary notes
Natural eutrophication only (the area is naturally oligotrophic). After impoundment, the reservoir responded with a trophic upsurge commonly reported for the early years of any reservoir's life. Total phosphorus increases lead to increases in chlorophyll a, zooplankton biomass and even fish yields. If LG2 responds as other reservoirs, the trophic status will slowly change from its present oligotrophic/mesotrophic status to the mid. oligotrophic range. I4 ACIDIFICATION
No systematic data available.

J. WASTEWATER TREATMENTS

None in area.

M. LEGISLATIVE AND INSTITUTIONAL MEASURES FOR UPGRADING LAKE ENVIRONMENTS (Q)

M1 NATIONAL AND LOCAL LAWS CONCERNED
Names of the laws (the year of legislation)

La Loi de la Quality de l'Environment (1978)
James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement (1975)
Mercury Agreement (1986) Responsible authorities
Government of Quebec, Ministry of Environment
Hydro-Quebec, Governments of Quebec and Canada
Societe d'Energie de la Baie James; Quebec and Canada
Hydro-Quebec; Government of Quebec Main items of control
Environmental impacts
Impacts from reservoir management
Impacts from reservoir construction
High mercury levels in fish

M2 INSTITUTIONAL MEASURES

Hydro-Quebec

M3 RESEARCH INSTITUTES ENGAGED IN THE LAKE ENVIRONMENT STUDIES

l) Environment departments of the above agencies

N. SOURCES OF DATA

Questionnaire filled by Drs. M. Kislalioglu & F. Berkes, Institute of Urban and Environmental Studies, Brock University, St. Catharines, Ontario. l) Berkes, F. (1988) The intrinsic difficulty of predicting impacts: lessons from the James Bay Hydro project. Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 8: 201-220.
Roy, D., Laperle, M., Boudreault, J., Boucher, R., Schetagne, R. & Therien, N. (1986) Ecological Monitoring Program of the La Grande Complex 1978-1984. Summary Report. Societe d'Energie de la Baie James, Montreal.
Sur Equipment de l'Amenagement de La Grande 2. Rapport sur les Etudes d'Avant-projet. Volume 3 (1985) Hydro-Quebec/Societe d'Energie de la Baie James, Montreal.
) Canadian Climate Normals, 1951-1980. Environment Canada, Atmospheric Environment Service.
Boucher, R. & Schetagne, R. (1983) Repercussions de la Mise en Eau des Reservoirs de La Grande 2 et Opinaca sur la Concentration de Mercure dans les Poissons. Societe d'Energie de la Baie James, Montreal.
Nault, R. (1980) Surveillance ecologique intensive du Reservoir de LG2. Eau du Quebec, 13 (1): 33-43.
Connaissance du Milieu des Territoires de la Baie James et du Nouveau- Quebec (1978) Societe d'Energie de la Baie James, Montreal.
Magnin, E. (1977) Ecologie des Faux Douces du Territoire de la Baie James. Societe d'Energie de la Baie James, Montreal.
Rowe, J. S. (1972) Forest Regions of Canada. Canadian Forest Service, Department of the Environment, Ottawa.
Environmental Studies, James Bay Territory, 1972-1979, Summary Report (1982) Societe de Development de la Baie James/Environment Canada, Ottawa.
Orientation du Development et de l'Amenagement du Territoire de la Baie James (1980) Societe de Development de la Baie James, Montreal.
James Bay Mercury Committee, Report of Activities, 1987-1988.