Longterm Monitoring & Geomorphic Characterisation

Road Restoration Effectiveness Monitoring; Olympic National Forest, Washington

We monitored 13 stream road crossings and ~20 miles of decommissioned road on the Olympic national Forest for 3-4 consecutive years to investigate the effects culvert removal had on stream channel cross-sectional geometry, substrate composition, and gradient. We utilized GPS, laser rangefinders, auto-levels, and digital angle encoders to characterize stream channels before and after culverts were removed and roads were decommissioned. Data were entered into handheld electronic data collection devises with custom designed applications. Multiple years worth of data were compile and presented in a final report that characterized the channels response to this restoration activity.

The photograph presented here was taken while measuring a cross section.The graph represents the cross section measurements. All cross sectional data were analyzed using XSPro software.