RIPARIAN ECOSYSTEM IMPORTANCE, THREATS, PROTECTION, ENHANCEMENT, RESTORATION, AND MANAGEMENT (also a little detention, retention, infiltration, Rain Gardens, wetlands, watersheds, etc)

1
RIPARIAN ECOSYSTEM IMPORTANCE, THREATS,
PROTECTION, ENHANCEMENT, RESTORATION, AND
MANAGEMENT (also a little detention, retention,
infiltration, Rain Gardens, wetlands, watersheds,
etc)

• By Dave Derrick, with liberal help from Drs. Rich
  Fischer Chester Martin, ERDC-EL, Ron Redman
  with AR Natural Resources Commission, other
  sources, steal what ya can, always give credit!

2
PHOTO BY FISCHER
What are Riparian Areas?
3
Is There a Universally Accepted Definition of
Riparian?

• Riparian (ri per' e n) adj. lt L. riparius lt
  ripa, a bank lt IE. reipa, a steep edge 1. of,
  adjacent to, or living on, the bank of a river
  or, sometimes, of a lake or pond, etc.
• Root for such words as
• River
• Rip-rap
• Bank swallow (Riparia riparia)
• Brush rabbit (Sylvilagus bachmani riparius)

4
From Fischer
5
Terminology describing vegetation adjacent to
streams and rivers

• Riparian gallery forests
• Riparian swamps
• Riparian woodlands
• Riparian ecosystems
• Riparian forest stands
• Hardwood stringers
• Swamp forest
• Bottomland hardwoods
• Cottonwood bottomlands
• Streamside zones
• Riparian Corridors
• Riparian Buffer Strips

• Riparian floodplains
• Riparian zones
• Riparian areas
• Riparian wetlands
• River margins
• Riverine bands
• Riverine floodplains
• Riverfront hardwoods
• Buffer strips
• Streamside vegetation
• Riparian Prairie
• Floodplain forests

6
GREAT RIPARIAN HERE, BUT RARE IN MANY AREAS,
KASKASKIA RIVER, IL
7
Crazy river has kept folks back a little
PHOTO FROM FISCHER
8
Maumee River, Toledo, OH Where is the
floodplain?
9

• EPA research shows that when a watershed exceeds
  10 impervious cover then some species will start
  to disappear from the streams rivers.
• Exactly what is 10 impervious cover?

10
This is way more than 10

• IN THE AIR-CHICAGO TO BUFFALO PIX BY DERRICK
  6/15/2009

11

• 10 impervious cover can be large single family
  dwellings on 1 acre lots !!!

12
This is getting close to 10 impervious cover

• IN THE AIR-CHICAGO TO BUFFALO PIX BY DERRICK
  6/15/2009

13
Riparian Vegetationintercepts sediment,
pesticides, herbicides, and other materials in
surface runoff
Good for pollinators insect production
FROM FISCHER
14
Trimming or removal of vegetation can cause
Increased water temperature through loss of
shading Increased surface runoff Sedimentation
Reduced infiltration Altered stream
flow Unstable streambanks
Pix by Derrick, Atlanta, GA area
15
Riparian VegetationEffects on Streams
Provides litter and small large woody debris
important to aquatic organisms, insect
production, shade, microhabitats, cover, etc.

FROM FISCHER
16
Buffer Requirements

• FUNCTION RIPARIAN
  BUFFER WIDTH
• Water quality 5 to 30 m
• Wildlife 30 to 500 m
• Insect production 10 to 30
  m
• Flood attenuation 20 to 150 m
• Detrital input 3 to 10 m
• Stream stabilization 10 to 20 m
• From Dr. Craig Johnson, Utah State University
• These are not absolutes, widths can possibly
  change with additional knowledge from continued
  research.
• Note It is possible that several functions can
  be accomplished within the same space.

17
FROM FISCHER

• Riparian areas offer in proximity all three
  critical resources for wildlife

18

• Over 70 of all terrestrial wildlife
  species use riparian corridors

19

trees
Complexity
Layers Species in layers Competition Detrital
components
Types
shrubs
Vertical Horizontal
Herbaceoussubshrubs
Riparian zones provide essential horizontal and
vertical habitat complexity
20

• A study on the Apalachicola River in FL.
  showed that 64 species of fish used the
  riparian area when the river was on the
  flood!!

21
Comparison of a single cage of juvenile salmon
reared in intertidal river habitat below
floodplain (left) and a single cage of fish
reared in ephemeral floodplain habitats (right)
after 54 days in respective habitats (Jeffres et
al. 2008).
From Dr. Rich Fischer
22
Native minnows dominated, but during one flood
event, sunfish, perch, bass were found!!

• Research showed that 24 species of fish (10,843
  individuals) inhabited the 12 ag ditches studied!!

23
Winery in foreground is enrolled in the Fish
Friendly Farming program, Russian River
Watershed, CA

• This vinyard uses no chemicals 100 solar
  powered

24
Regional Trends of Riparian Losses

• Region
• Northern floodplain forests
• Arizona
• New Mexico
• California
• Sacramento Valley, CA
• Mississippi Delta
• Southern Bottomland Hardwoods

• Percent Loss
• 70
• 90-95
• 90
• 95-96
• 98
• 82-85
• 80-90

From Fischer
25
Easement Programs
USDA-NRCS Programs Information for Soil
Conservation

• Emergency Watershed Protection Program
  (Floodplain Easements)
• Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program
• Grassland Reserve Program
• Healthy Forests Reserve Program
• Wetlands Reserve Program

Slide 25

• Courtesy John Whitney, DC, NRCS

26
Stream trampled by cattle, disturbed sediment
easily dislodged by flow. Haw Cr. MO.
4-6-2011-Derrick
27
Overgrazed, note very short grass, horses in
background
Feces will be washed directly into the stream
28
Beats that hot wormy water from the stream in
summer
From Ron Redman
29
Impacts of roads
From Rich Fischer
30
Cut slope drainage boundary
Bar ditch drainage
Road surface drainage boundary
Collector trough
From Turton
31
Road Erosion Summary Graph of 5 Erosion Studies
From Turton
32
Improvements to ditches ???, vertical sides of
ditch do not revegetate, Lancaster, NY
33
Better functioning ditch just uphill from the
last slide shown, Elton Creek
34
Stormwater
35
www.itreetools.org/design.php
i-Tree Design (beta) allows anyone to make a
simple estimation of the benefits individual
trees provide. With inputs of location, species,
tree size and condition, the program will
calculate the benefits that trees provide
related to greenhouse gas mitigation, air quality
improvements and storm water interception.
Benefits will be calculated in monetary
amounts!!! Trees effects on building energy use
can be evaluated.There are several tools at the
www.itreetools.org site. Click on the
applications button.

• Visit http//value.m.davey.com on your smart
  phone today for a mobile i-tree design app.

36
title
Green ruffs roofs are catching on!!!
Landscape Architect and Specifier News Nov 2006,
pg. 188
37
Mini case study 4 of 6
Twin parking lots the Rain Garden
dave derrick
38
Looks even better in summer!!
Mini case study 6 of 6
dave derrick
39
The Role of Development on Stormwater

• Manipulation of predevelopment hydrologic cycle
• Impervious surface causes more runoff, pollutant
  laden

Forested System
Increasing the impervious surface cover changes
the hydrologic flows
From Virginia Collins, ESF, Syracuse
40
THE END