National Stream & Aquatic Ecology Center - Projects
Projects
Technology Development
An important area of focus for the Center is what is typically called “Technology Development,” specifically the development and implementation of technical tools, models, monitoring protocols, and datasets that help field practitioners working on different problems and technical issues involving watersheds, streams, riparian ecosystems, fisheries and aquatic ecosystems.
The following is a list of different Tech Development and Tech Transfer efforts that the Center is currently working on and addressing in our routine work:
Aquatic Organism Passage (AOP) physical effectiveness monitoring at road-stream crossings.
Pacific-Fish Interior-Fish Biological Opinion (PIBO) Effectiveness Monitoring Program (EMP).
Application of the “Riparian Response Guilds Framework” for determining instream flows.
National Riparian Protocol (NRP) software development and publications.
Development and application of remote sensing techniques for estimating the impacts of grazing on aquatic habitat and riparian areas.
Sediment delivery to streams from wildfires and unpaved roads.
Technical guidance for stream restoration
Field Assistance
Field units within the National Forest System (NFS) require expert technical support and consultation on technical issues related to environmental flows, watershed processes and aquatic ecology either directly from the Center’s staff or by referral to other scientists and technical experts. Identifying critical training needs and designing, developing and implementing effective training programs for field specialists, staff and line officers, remains a priority for the Center.
The following is a list of ongoing efforts that the Center is currently focusing on related to direct field assistance:
Watershed, channel, and aquatic habitat restoration.
Impact of livestock grazing on fish and aquatic habitat.
Beaver, fish and stream habitat restoration and rehabilitation.
Development and implementation of stream and floodplain restoration designs.
Understanding trout and habitat dynamics.
Understanding the extent and range of cutthroat trout species.
Bull trout species and habitat consultation.
Aquatic Organism Passage (AOP) design assistance.
Flood Potential
Greater insight into the expected magnitudes and spatial variability of riverine floods is needed to effectively manage our stream valley resources and build more sustainable communities. Traditional approaches for understanding and quantifying flood hazards have not substantially evolved despite concerns regarding increased flood severity in a changing climate. Hazards can also be poorly communicated by technical specialists to decision makers and the public, with more concise language and tools needed. With innovative use of the observational record, the flood potential method was developed to assist with these challenges.
This analysis approach uses a space-for-time substitution to predict expected large flood magnitudes given the streamgage record in nearby watersheds, in zones of similar flood response. Regressions of record peak discharges for streamgages across each zone define the expected flood potential, with high explained variance (average R2 = 0.93). The 90% prediction limit defines the maximum likely flood potential, with discharges above this being extreme and departure indicating the degree of extremity.
From these zonal regressions, indices were developed to test for trends in the magnitudes, frequency, and flashiness of large floods, and to facilitate the comparison of flooding characteristics across regions and continents to help understand and communicate about flood hazards and how they vary.
Flood Potential Portal: https://floodpotential.erams.com
Flood Potential Method Support Page: https://y-water.com/floodpotential/
The Flood Potential Portal (FPP) is a decision support system developed, in part, to serve the results of these analyses through a map-based interface. This tool was developed as a collaboration between the One Water Solutions Institute at Colorado State University and the Forest Service National Stream and Aquatic Ecology Center. For continental through catchment scales, the FPP provides practitioners enhanced understanding of flood hazards, highlighting flood variability over space and time, and quantifying flood magnitudes for user-selected watersheds. The Flood Potential Portal provides a one-stop shop for flood prediction, including a module for computing flood potential, index flood frequency, and regional regression flood frequency (StreamStats) discharge predictions for quantifying design flood discharges, as well as a module for computing streamgage flood-frequency analyses.
Detailed instructions on using this tool are available at:
Flood Potential Portal: User Manual (PDF, 21.1 MB)
Flood Potential Portal: Quick Start Guide (PDF, 373 KB)
For additional information on the flood potential method, contact Steven Yochum, Hydrologist, USDA Forest Service, National Stream and Aquatic Ecology Center.
The currently available analysis extent is shown below (with flood potential index values: warmer colors indicate higher flood potential).
Stream and Riparian Restoration Network
The National Stream and Aquatic Ecology Center (NSAEC), a unit of the Washington Office Field Services and Innovation Center, hosts a community of practice to connect field practitioners with each other, regional and national specialists, and researchers.
Subject areas targeted for discussion through this network include: stream channel and riparian enhancement and reconstruction, aquatic habitat enhancement, aquatic organism passage, riparian management, floodplain connectivity, environmental flows, streambank stabilization techniques, and more. Assessment, planning, design, permitting, implementation, and monitoring are all suitable subjects for discussion. Practitioners encouraged to participate in this network include hydrologists, fish and aquatic biologists, riparian ecologists, geomorphologists, engineers, range ecologists, and other relevant specialists.
If you are a Forest Service employee and have relevant information and technology to share or a question to pose, email the list at FS-pdl wo nfs nsaec stream restoration.
For general information or questions regarding the Forest Service Stream and Riparian Restoration Network, or to join the Forest Service public distribution list (pdl), email Steven Yochum, Hydrologist with the National Stream and Aquatic Ecology Center.