Linking watersheds and streams through functional modeling of watershed processes

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Linking watersheds and streams through functional
modeling of watershed processes

• David Theobald, Silvio Ferraz, Erin Poston, and
  Jeff Deems
• Natural Resource Ecology Lab
• Dept of Recreation Tourism
• Colorado State University
• Fort Collins, CO 80523 USA
• 19 May 2004

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Watershed - Stream


Stand-alone watershed
Process/Functional Zonal
Accumulate Up/down (net.)
Watershed HUCs/WBD Reach
Contributing Areas (RCAs) Grain (Resolution)
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Watershed - Stream


Stand-alone watershed Watershed-based analyses (HUCs) Tesselation of true, adjoint catchments
Process/Functional Zonal
Accumulate Up/down (net.)
Watershed HUCs/WBD Reach
Contributing Areas (RCAs) Grain (Resolution)
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Watershed-based analyses

• agricultural, urban (e.g., ATtILA)
• Average road density (Bolstad and Swank)
• Dam density (Moyle and Randall 1998)
• Road length w/in riparian zone (Arya 1999)
• But 45 of HUCs are not watersheds

Southern Rockies Ecosystem Project. 2000.
EPA. 1997. An ecological assessment of the US
Mid-Atlantic Region A landscape atlas.
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Watershed - Stream

Overlapping watersheds - Delineate watershed from outlet
Stand-alone watershed Watershed-based analyses (HUCs) Tesselation of true, adjoint catchments ?
Process/Functional Zonal
Accumulate Up/down (net.)
Watershed HUCs/WBD Reach
Contributing Areas (RCAs) Grain (Resolution)
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Watershed - Stream

Overlapping watersheds Tesselation catchments accumulate downstream
Stand-alone watershed Watershed-based analyses (HUCs) Tesselation of true, adjoint catchments ?
Process/Functional Zonal
Accumulate Up/down (net.)
Watershed HUCs/WBD Reach
Contributing Areas (RCAs) Grain (Resolution)
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Upper and lower Colorado Basin Flows to
downstream HUCs
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Watershed - Stream

Overlapping watersheds Accumulate downstream FLOWS (and SPARROW)
Stand-alone watershed Watershed-based analyses (HUCs) Tesselation of true, adjoint catchments ?
Process/Functional Zonal
Accumulate Up/down (net.)
Watershed HUCs/WBD Reach
Contributing Areas (RCAs) Grain (Resolution)
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Reach Contributing Areas (RCAs)

• Automated delineation
• Inputs
• stream network (from USGS NHD 1100K)
• topography (USGS NED, 30 m or 90 m)
• Process
• Grow contributing area away from reach segment
  until ridgeline
• Uses WATERSHED command

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RCA example

• US ERF1.2 1 km DEM 60,833 RCAs

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Reaches are linked to catchments

• 1 to 1 relationship
• Properties of the watershed can be linked to
  network for accumulation operation

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Watershed - Stream
Hydrologic distance Instream Up vs. down?
Overlapping watersheds Accumulate downstream FLOWS (and SPARROW)
Stand-alone watershed Watershed-based analyses (HUCs) Tesselation of true, adjoint catchments ?
Process/Functional Zonal
Accumulate Up/down (net.)
Watershed HUCs/WBD Reach
Contributing Areas (RCAs) Grain (Resolution)
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Types of Distance

• As the crow flies
• As the seed floats (A?B)
• As the fish swims (C??D)
• Upstream length (B up)
• Network (dams, fragmentation)

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Upstream 66 km
Mainstem Upstream 37 km
Network 16 km (down) 6 km (up)
Downstream 298 km
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Watershed - Stream
Hydrologic distance Instream Up vs. down? FLOWS
Overlapping watersheds Accumulate downstream FLOWS (and SPARROW)
Stand-alone watershed Watershed-based analyses (HUCs) Tesselation of true, adjoint catchments ?
Process/Functional Zonal
Accumulate Up/down (net.)
Watershed HUCs/WBD Reach
Contributing Areas (RCAs) Grain (Resolution)
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RCAs are linked together but spatial
configuration within an RCA?
1. Ignore variability 2. Buffer streams 3.
Buffer outlet
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2 major hydro. processes w/in RCA

• 1. Overland (hillslope) Distance (A to A)
• 2. Instream flow Distance (A to O)

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Flow distance overland instream

• Hydro-conditioned DEM (e.g., EDNA)
• FLOWDIRECTION
• FLOWLENGTH

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Flow distance overland

• Hydro-conditioned DEM (e.g., EDNA)
• Burn stream into FLOWDIRECTION
• FLOWLENGTH

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Flow distance instream

• Hydro-conditioned DEM (e.g., EDNA)
• FLOWDIRECTION
• FLOWLENGTH from outline overland FLOWLENGTH

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Summary

• RCAs networked together w/in RCA distances
• Practical framework for flexible,
  functional-based applications
• Plans
• Use cost-weighting for w/in RCA distances
• FLOWS tools Fall 2004

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• Thanks!
• Comments? Questions?
• Funding/Disclaimer The work reported here was
  developed under the STAR Research Assistance
  Agreement CR-829095 awarded by the U.S.
  Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to Colorado
  State University. This presentation has not been
  formally reviewed by EPA.  The views expressed
  here are solely those of the presenter and
  STARMAP, the Program (s)he represents. EPA does
  not endorse any products or commercial services
  mentioned in this presentation.
• STARMAP www.stat.colostate.edu/nsu/starmap
• RWTools email davet_at_nrel.colostate.edu

Funding/Disclaimer The work reported here was
developed under the STAR Research Assistance
Agreement CR-829095 awarded by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to Colorado
State University. This presentation has not been
formally reviewed by EPA.  The views expressed
here are solely those of the presenter and
STARMAP, the Program (s)he represents. EPA does
not endorse any products or commercial services
mentioned in this presentation.
Funding/Disclaimer The work reported here was
developed under the STAR Research Assistance
Agreement CR-829095 awarded by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to Colorado
State University. This presentation has not been
formally reviewed by EPA.  The views expressed
here are solely those of the presenter and
STARMAP, the Program (s)he represents. EPA does
not endorse any products or commercial services
mentioned in this presentation.
Funding/Disclaimer The work reported here was
developed under the STAR Research Assistance
Agreement CR-829095 awarded by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to Colorado
State University. This presentation has not been
formally reviewed by EPA.  The views expressed
here are solely those of the presenter and
STARMAP, the Program (s)he represents. EPA does
not endorse any products or commercial services
mentioned in this presentation.
CR - 829095
CR - 829095
CR - 829095