THE FIRST EUROPEAN AND NORTH AMERICAN COOPERATION ON FISH PASSAGE CONFERENCES Fish Passage 2015 will be an important international forum to exchange findings and experiences on fish related passage issues. This international conference is of interest to researchers, educators, practitioners, funders, and regulators who have an interest in advancements in technical fishways, nature-like fishways, downstream passage solutions, stream restoration and stabilization, dam removal, road ecology, and the myriad of funding, safety, climate change, and other social issues surrounding watershed connectivity projects.

This is a three-day conference with concurrent sessions in engineering, ecohydraulics, biology, and management and social issues. The conference will also feature plenary talks, professional networking opportunities, special thematic sessions, and a poster session. Independently offered short courses and workshops will be available immediately before the conference. In addition, tours will be offered on Thursday, June 25, 2015.

The main goal is to share fish passage and river connectivity best practices with international colleagues and to attract worldwide experts. Within Europe this conference is seen as an evaluation and learning point for the river connectivity goals of the European Water Framework Directive, where 2015 is one of the deadlines for measures within European river basin plans.

Fish Passage 2015 will be an international cooperation between North American Fish Passage organisation, Karlstad University (Sweden), FAO-EIFAAC (Europe), Wanningen Water Consult (The Netherlands), Dutch Angling Association (The Netherlands), The Van Hall Institute (The Netherlands) and the ‘More room for fish’ project (The Netherlands). These organizations have a leading role in the organizing the event.

Fish Passage 2015 follows the successful Fish Passage 2014 conference held at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, the Fish Passage 2013 conference held at Oregon State University, and the 2012 and 2011 conferences held at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Details about the prior conferences, including downloadable PDF’s for many of the presentations, can be found here.

Registration and abstract submission will start on October 1, 2014.