Verge Vegetation

What to look for:

• Temporary or permanent disturbances– Hiking trails– Bare spots– Anywhere that should have vegetation and

does not

• Holes in the canopy

Verge Vegetation

Bank Vegetation

What to look for:

• Is there vegetation on the bank?

• Should there be?

• Is the vegetation being disturbed?– Foot traffic?– High water?– Other disturbances?

Bank Vegetation

% Bare Soil On Bank

What to look for:

• In 10m, what percent of your bank is just exposed soil?– Rocks?– Vegetation?

% Bare Soil on Bank

Bank Erosion

What to look for:

• Undercutting – where the rapid flow of water carries soil from the bottom of the bank, causing the top to overhang the water and become unstable.

• Undercutting = Bank Failure = Greater Sedimentation

Bank Erosion

Bank Slumping and Movement

What to look for:

• Parts of verge that have collapsed onto bank– Trees leaning towards water with exposed

root systems– Verge melting like ice cream onto bank

Bank Slumping and Movement

Bends and Riffles

What to look for:

• Count riffles and bends in your 10m

• If no more than one or two, expand count to 50m

• Snags

Bends and Riffles

Aquatic Vegetation

What to look for:

• Some aquatic vegetation that is not hindering flow of stream

• No vegetation = bad

• Too much = bad

Aquatic Vegetation

Sediment Deposition

What to look for:

• Look at stream bottom, do you see:– Color and shape of rocks?– Shape of rocks?– Everything covered in sand, many bars?– Mudflats?

Sediment Deposition