Watershed Management Framework

1
Watershed Management Framework

• Mission of watershed management
• Coordinate and integrate the programs, tools, and
  resources of multiple stakeholder groups to
  better protect, maintain, and restore the
  ecological structure and function of watersheds
  and support the sustainable uses of watersheds.

2
Form Interagency Workgroup

• Design and implement a framework to facilitate
  the transition from a program-centered to a
  resource-based approach to holistic management of
  watershed.

3
Resource Management Goals

• Conserve and enhance public health.
• Conserve and enhance watershed ecosystems.
• Support watershed resource use to achieve water
  quality standards and conservation goals.
• Conserve and improve ambient conditions.
• Reduce or prevent pollutant loadings and other
  stressors.

4
Goals Achieved Through Operational Objectives

• Identify indicators of watershed integrity
• Increase communications and consensus among all
  stakeholder
• Implement integrated solutions by coordinating
  activities on targeted watersheds
• Provide a forum for program networking
• Develop stronger partnerships with regional,
  county, and local governments
• Coordinate public communication and education
  forums,
• Coordinate existing means and develop new avenues
  for broad participation
• Promote stronger resource conservation ethics

5
Major Elements

• Stakeholder involvement
• Basin-wide management units
• Tool kit of programs

NRCS
Conservation Reserve Program
Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program
Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program
Wetland Reserve Program
6
Forests as Source of NPS Pollution

• Forests not a major source of NPS
• Especially true in flat lands
• Potential for erosion increases with slope and
  soil type
• Forests used as buffer against more intensive
  land uses
• Agriculture
• Urbanization

7
Knowledge of Precipitation Amounts and Patterns

• Plan drainage structures
• Size temporary culverts to handle storm events
  during period of operations
• Size permanent drainage structure to handle 100
  year storms

8
Knowledge of Precipitation Amounts and Patterns

• Time operations
• Expose soil during dry periods if possible
• Establish vegetative cover as soon as possible
• Use native vegetation whenever possible

9
What Happens to Precipitation?

• Hydrologic cycle
• P RO ET S, where
• P precipitation
• RO runoff
• ET evapotranspiration
• S storage

10
Evapotransporation

• Loss of water from a given area during a
  specified time by evaporation from the soil
  surface and by transpiration from the plants.
• Supports plant life
• Reduces water yield

11
Relationship of Forest Cover to Water Flows

• Erosion
• Impacts of
• Roads
• Harvests
• Water flows
• Storm events
• Storage
• Water yield
• Amount
• Timing

12
Timber Harvesting

• Major factor in control of water quality in
  forested watersheds
• Felling, limbing and bucking avoid riparian
  zones and exclude slash from channel

13
Timber Harvesting

• Skidding and yarding minimize soil compaction
  and disturbance
• Use high lead systems in sensitive and steep areas

14
Timber Harvesting

• Roads and skid trails layout and construct
  according to BMPs

15
Impact of Harvesting on Water Quantity and Quality

• Stone, Swank, and Hornbeck. 1978. Impacts of
  Timber Harvest Regeneration Systems on Stream
  Flow and Soils in the Eastern Deciduous Region,
  Forest Soils and Land Use, Proceedings Fifth
  North Am. Forest Soils Conf.

16
Low Flow
Water Yield
VH
VH
H
H
M
M
L
L
VL
VL
uncut
selection
shelter- wood
clear- cut
intensive clearcut
uncut
selection
shelter- wood
clear- cut
intensive clearcut
Peak Flow
Sedimentation
VH
VH
poor roads skid trails
poor roads skid trails
H
H
M
M
L
L
Good control of roads skid trails
VL
VL
uncut
selection
shelter- wood
clear- cut
intensive clearcut
uncut
selection
shelter- wood
clear- cut
intensive clearcut
17
Dissolved Nutrient Loss
Nutrient Removal by Harvest Average Annual
VH
VH
Thick organic layer
H
H
M
M
L
L
VL
VL
uncut
selection
shelter- wood
clear- cut
intensive clearcut
uncut
selection
shelter- wood
clear- cut
intensive clearcut
Maximum Stream Temperature
Reduction in Surface Soil Organic Matter
VH
Without shade
VH
H
H
M
M
L
L
With shade strip
VL
VL
uncut
selection
shelter- wood
clear- cut
intensive clearcut
uncut
selection
shelter- wood
clear- cut
intensive clearcut
18
NPS Sediment

• Total suspended solids (TSS), i.e., sediment is
  major NPS pollution of concern

Cropland 1 to 20 tons per acre per
year Forestland 1 lb. to 0.5 tons per acre per
year
Issue is amount of sediment loading relative to
expected amount. Usually zero for streams in
forested watersheds.
19
NPS Nitrogen

• Water soluble
• Some converted to gaseous forms by microbial
  action
• Enters surface and goundwater

20
NPS Phosphorus

• Major nutrient leading to water pollution
• Binds to soil particles correlated with silt
  load
• Leads to low dissolved oxygen from excessive
  plant growth

21
Logging and Forestry BMPs

• Planning
• Roads
• Skid Trails
• Stream Crossings
• Riparian Zones
• Log Landings
• Fuel

22
Related BMPs

• Equipment breakdown and spills
• Litter
• Site preparation
• Mechanical and hand clearing
• Chemical site preparation
• Planting and weed control
• Forest chemicals
• Fire and fire control lines
• Woodland grazing
• Recreation trails

23
Streamside Forest as Sediment Filter

• Sediment settles as speed of surface flow reduced
  by forest floor
• Sediment is filtered out as sediment loaded water
  percolates into porous forest floor

24
Benefits of Buffers

• Control surface runoff and shallow ground water
• Nutrients
• Sediment
• Shade streams
• Ameliorate effects of some pesticides
• Provide dissolved and particulate organic food
  for aquatic and terrestrial systems

Sheet erosion on crop land
25
Underlying Principles of Buffers

• Vegetation and soil filters sediments
• Vegetation takes up nutrients which can be
  removed from portion of site by harvesting timber
  and forage.

Clearfield Creek in PA, stable structure but
polluted by mine drainage
26
Riparian Forest Buffer Design
27
Total Buffer Width Streamside

• Determine based on
• Soil hydrographic group
• Total area of source
• Soil capability class

28
Midwest Issue

• Field drain tiles empty into drainage ditches
  that flow directly to waterways.
• Methods need to buffer tile water before it
  enters ditches.
• Nitrogen is pollutant

29
Hydrology
30
Water Movement Below Surface

• Groundwater issues
• Recharge areas
• Inorganic pollutants
• Soil trafficability
• Location of roads and skid trails
• Operating seasons

Abandoned wells are most common source of ground
water pollution, not surface applied chemicals.
31
Groundwater Issues

• Groundwater recharge zones should receive special
  protection

32
Management for Water Yield

• Basic treatments
• Removal of woody vegetation limited application
• Weather modification not practical
• Construction of catchments best technique but
  with high ecological cost

33
Control of Stream Flow Regimen

• Objectives
• Prevent deterioration of regimen because of
  altered land uses
• Improve natural stream flow regime by management
  of hydrology
• Rehabilitate deteriorated watersheds

Stable banks
34
Primary considerations

• Irregular flow
• Volume of high and low flows
• Duration of high and low flows
• Capacity of structures to handle high flows
• Management of aquatic ecosystems

Hyetograph
35
Conflict Resolution
The Colorado Internet Center for Environmental
Problem Solving, University of Colorado

• Watershed management involves multiple
• Stakeholders
• Landowners
• High likelihood of conflicting
• Values,
• Cultures
• Threat to economic security

36
Conflict Resolution

• Resolution should be based on a participatory
  process led by non-stakeholder
• Agree on discussion process
• Identify points of
• agreement
• disagreement
• Agree on major issues
• Identify possible solutions
• Implement representative solutions

37
Forest Certification

• Way to guarantee BMPs are implemented for
  multiple objectives,
• Water quality
• Timber production
• Biodiversity
• Response to interest groups wanting to
• Stop timber harvests
• Buy products from sustainably managed forests

Forest Stewardship Council is a major certifying
agency
38
What Is Certification

• Loose definition - Verification by a first-,
  second, or third-party of compliance with
  principles, objectives and performance measures
  established by a recognized organization.
• Strict definition - Independent verification of
  conformity to a standard.

39
Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) Program

• Sustainable Forestry
• To practice forestry to meet the needs of the
  present without compromising the ability of
  future generations to meet their own needs by
  practicing a land stewardship ethic which
  integrates the reforestation, managing, growing,
  nurturing, and harvesting of trees for useful
  products with conservation of soil, air and water
  quality, wildlife and fish habitat and aesthetics.

40
Definitions

• Principle The vision and direction for
  sustainable forest management
• Objective A fundamental goal of sustainable
  forest management
• Performance measure A means of judging whether
  an objective has been fulfilled