Watershed Indicators of Landform Development

From the Proceedings of the 1975 Meetings of the Arizona Section - American Water Resources Assn. and the Hydrology Section - Arizona Academy of Science - April 11-12, 1975, Tempe, ArizonaTraditionally, watershed management is concerned with water and sediment yield, vegetation, soils, and meteorology, but not with geomorphology. Often it is in this field that the explanation can be found for the formation and present condition of a watershed and its future development. Examples are presented to demonstrate that factors in the hydraulic geometry of streams indicate whether a watershed is in an active stage of landform development, or is in dynamic equilibrium. Some general guides for the practitioner are provided. Watershed management research cannot afford to ignore the basic geomorphic setting of watersheds. If geomorphology is not considered, the researcher's results could be misinterpreted.This article is part of the Hydrology and Water Resources in Arizona and the Southwest collections. Digital access to this material is made possible by the Arizona-Nevada Academy of Science and the University of Arizona Libraries. For more information about items in this collection, contact [email protected]

Equilibrium Condition and Sediment Transport in an Ephemeral Mountain Stream

From the Proceedings of the 1976 Meetings of the Arizona Section - American Water Resources Assn. and the Hydrology Section - Arizona Academy of Science - April 29-May 1, 1976, Tucson, ArizonaFlow frequency curves supported the hypothesis that channel-forming flows are exceptional events in ephemeral mountain streams. This was substantiated by the lack of a relationship between sediment production and sediment yield. Numerous bed nickpoints indicated channel instability, despite gravel bars and log steps that are part of the slope adjustment processes. Due to differences in structural density between bars and steps, size distribution of the sediment deposits above them differs. Although only qualitative guidelines are presented, the watershed or wildlife manager should be in a position to utilize the formation of gravel bars and log steps for his management goals.This article is part of the Hydrology and Water Resources in Arizona and the Southwest collections. Digital access to this material is made possible by the Arizona-Nevada Academy of Science and the University of Arizona Libraries. For more information about items in this collection, contact [email protected]

Influence of Forest Density on Bedload Movement in a Small Mountain Stream

From the Proceedings of the 1977 Meetings of the Arizona Section - American Water Resources Assn. and the Hydrology Section - Arizona Academy of Science - April 15-16, 1977, Las Vegas, NevadaIn contrast to three ephemeral streams in the vicinity, Tony Bear Creek, a small perennial stream in the White Mountains of Arizona, showed strong relationships among parameters of hydraulic geometry. Distances between gravel bars and log steps showed an inverse relationship with gradient (r² = 0.95). Shape factor and width-depth ratio increased upstream (r² = 0.98 and 0.90, respectively), indicating depth decrease toward the headwaters. The longitudinal profile is concave, and small, infrequent channel bars suggest that sediment movement is small. In contrast to the ephemeral streams, Tony Bear Creek is thus judged to be in dynamic equilibrium. Proportion of log steps to total steps (gravel bars plus logs) was much smaller in Tony Bear Creek (about 16 %) than in five other mountain streams (about 50 %). While all other streams ran through dense forests, only 60% of Tony Bear Creek was in forest, of which 13% had been selectively cut. Thus, forest density determined the proportion of logs incorporated into the stream hydraulic system, which in turn affects bedload movement.This article is part of the Hydrology and Water Resources in Arizona and the Southwest collections. Digital access to this material is made possible by the Arizona-Nevada Academy of Science and the University of Arizona Libraries. For more information about items in this collection, contact [email protected]

Multipurpose prefabricated concrete check dam /

no.1

Characteristics and processes of soil piping in gullies /

no.6