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Quick Response Small Catchment Monitoring Techniques For Comparing Postfire Rehabilitation Treatment Effectiveness
Robichaud, P.R.; Brown, R.E. 2003.
Quick Response Small Catchment Monitoring Techniques For Comparing Postfire Rehabilitation Treatment Effectiveness.
p. 663-666 in
First Interagency Conference on Research in the Watersheds, 2003.
Renard, Kenneth G., McElroy, Stephen A., Gburek, William J., Canfield, H. Evan, and Scott, Russell L., eds.
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service,
27-30 October 2003, Benson, AZ.
Keywords: erosion, sedimentation, paired watersheds, instrumentation, data logger
Links:
PDF [145 KB]
Abstract:
Increased runoff and erosion commonly occur after wildfires with the onset of precipitation events. Various
erosion mitigation treatments are often used after wildfires to reduce flooding and sedimentation. The
effectiveness of these treatments has not been well documented in the literature; therefore we undertook a
rapid response approach (within four weeks following fire suppression) to install small catchment monitoring
systems to compare treatment effectiveness. A paired watershed approach uses two adjacent and similar
catchments (5-20 ac) after wildfires, treating one catchment and using the other catchment as a control.
We developed a rapid response monitoring system that can be installed in a few weeks to monitor sediment
yield and runoff response. These systems are usually left in place for three to five years.
Each installation has a complete weather station and electronic measuring devices to record streamflow and
sediment accumulation in a storage basin. Thesediment basins are cleaned out manually after each
storm event in order to relate the event (intensity, amount and duration) to runoff and sediment yield.
The data is automatically transmitted each day via cell phone or radio transmission to our computer server,
thus making the data available daily on our web page. We have installed six paired catchments to date in
Colorado, Washington, two in California, and two in Montana. Preliminary results suggest that 1) first year
storm events produce the largest runoff and sediment response and 2) treatment effectiveness is less with
high intensity short duration storm events. This rapid response protocol allows for quick installation of a
monitoring system to provide an assessment of treatment effectiveness.
Moscow FSL publication no. 2003z
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