Pebble Count Procedure for Assessing Watershed Cumulative Effects

摘要

Land management activities can result in the delivery of fine sediment tostreams. Because numerous laws require Federal land managers to analyze watershed cumulative effects, field personnel need simple monitoring procedures that can be used directly and consistently. The approach involves sampling a longitudinal reach of stream channel several hundred feet long using a zig-zag pebble count procedure that crosses all habitat features within a stream channel. The approach accommodates reference (unimpacted) and study (impacted) reaches so that impact comparisons can be made. Case studies show how the procedure is applied.