Final Environmental Impact Statement Kings River Experimental Watershed Project

Appendix A A-1

Appendix A Research Measurements

Extensive monitoring of physical, chemical, and biological indicators occurs at KREW to characterize watershed health. Measurements started in 

October of 2002 and provide eight years of data for the Providence Site and seven years of data for the Bull Site for some indicators. These pretreatment (baseline) measurements are used to characterize the range and variability of condition indicators. After the tree thinning and 

prescribed burning treatments, the same measurements will allow evaluation of change in the indicators. The KREW monitoring to address 

adaptive management (Section 1.3.3) and research goals (Section 3.8) is summarized here in more detail.

Physical measurements include stream flow, weather (temperature, relative humidity, solar radiation, wind speed, wind direction, snow depth, 

precipitation, snow water equivalence), stream channel characteristics and geomorphology, stream sediment load, soil erosion, stream turbidity 

and suspended sediment, soil and litter characteristics, and fuel load (wood on ground). Chemical measurements are made on shallow soil 

water, stream water, precipitation, and soil. Biological measurements include riparian and upland vegetation, stream invertebrates, stream 

algae, and Yosemite toad.

Table: A-1—KREW physical, chemical and biological measurements summary.

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section

Measurement 

category

Measurement Frequency Spatial unit

5.1 Stream 

Discharge

Measurement by ISCO 730 Bubbler®, Aquarod® , and Telog 15 minutes 1 point / watershed

5.2 Meteorology Temperature, Relative humidity

Solar radiation

Wind speed, Wind direction

Wind run 

Snow depth

Precipitation 

15 min. average, 24 hr. 

maximum, 24 hr. minimum

15 min. average flux,

24 hr. totalized flux density

15 min. sample, daily max. 10 

sec. gust speed and direction

24 hr. total

15 min. sample

1 min. average every 15 

minutes, daily change in total

2 points / watershed site

2 points / watershed site

2 points / watershed site

2 points / watershed site

2 points / watershed site

2 points / watershed site 
Final Environmental Impact Statement Kings River Experimental Watershed Project

Appendix A A-2

Snow Water Equivalence (SWE) 15 min average 1 point / watershed site

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Measurement 

category

Measurement Frequency Spatial unit

5.3.1 Stream Channel 

Characteristics: 

Baseline Data

Surveyed longitudinal profile data: thalweg One-time measurements,

may be repeated after 

treatments

Entire length of each 

stream (including main 

tributaries)

5.3.2 Stream Channel 

Characteristics 

and 

Geomorphology: 

Permanent 

Study Reaches 

and Crosssections

Primary cross-sections: bankfull width, bankfull depth, 

bank stability, stream shading, LWD count, pebble 

count, monumented cross sections survey

Secondary cross-sections: bankfull width, bankfull depth, 

bank stability, stream shading

V-star pools: ratio of fines vs pool volume

Headcut surveys: Lateral migration as well as volume 

displaced

Twice before treatment and 

for at least first three years 

after treatment

Twice before treatment and 

for at least first three years 

after treatment

Twice before treatment and 

for at least first three years 

after treatment

1 per reach 

(approximately 2-7 

reaches per stream)

4 per stream reach

Up to 10 pools per stream

All significant headcuts

5.3.2 Continued...

Stream Channel 

Characteristics 

and 

Geomorphology: 

Permanent Study 

Reaches and 

Cross-sections 

Herbst Physical Habitat Survey

Reach Data: habitat type (pool / non-pool), stream 

temperature, pH, conductivity, turbidity, flume size and 

stage, slope at 4 points in reach spaced at 25m, 

photos upstream and downstream at each slope point

Transect Data: wetted width, bank cover (both banks), 

bank angle (both banks), vegetative shading (both 

banks and upstream and downstream), stream depth 

and velocity (5 points per transect), cobble 

embeddedness (20 cobbles total)

Annually in spring (June) and

concurrent with invertebrate 

sampling

2 years have fall samples

Spring 2007 skipped

One 100 m reach / 

stream

10 transects / reach
Final Environmental Impact Statement Kings River Experimental Watershed Project

Appendix A A-3

5.4 Erosion and 

Sedimentation

Sediment load – wet volume, total dry mass, 

percent organic and inorganic material, and size class 

distribution of inorganic fraction

Annual 1 sediment basin / 

watershed (none at

integrated watersheds:

P300 and B200)

5.5 Turbidity and 

Suspended 

Sediment

Measurement by Forest Technology Systems DTS-12

Suspended sediment sampling via ISCO 6712 automated 

sampler

15 minutes

Storm based

1 point / watershed

1 point / watershed

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Measurement 

category

Measurement Frequency Spatial unit

5.6 Soil and Litter

Characteristics

Field measurements

1 m deep soil pit and 3 satellite samples around pit

Soil pit once before treatment

Litter and soil A horizon 

sampled once before and at 

least once after treatment for 

pit and satellites

Subset of points in 150 m 

grid that has been 

densified in B201 and 

P304 watersheds, same

points as vegetation

sample

5.7.1 Shallow Soil 

Water Chemistry

Prenart Vacuum lysimeter

Each Prenart system captures soil water at six 

locations with samples taken from two depths at each 

location: 13 cm and 26 cm, for a total of 12 samples. 

Resin lysimeters buried at 13 cm depth

Individual samples WY2002-

2006, 2007 integrated 

samples are retrieved and 

sent for analysis every 2 

weeks during wet season

Annual

Providence Site has one 

Prenart system / 

watershed. The Bull Site 

has no Prenart systems

2 / soil grid point and one 

at each Prenart sampling

tip location

5.7.2 Snowmelt and 

Rainfall 

Chemistry

Resin throughfall lysimeters placed on ground surface 

Snow-melt collectors, co-located at each Prenart site 

Six collectors sample throughfall precipitation and 

one is in an open canopy location, for a total of 7 

collectors per Prenart system

Annual

Integrated samples are 

retrieved and sent for 

analysis every 2 weeks 

during wet season

1 / soil grid point

1 below each Prenart tip 

sampling location

7 collectors / Prenart 

2 collectors each at upper 

& lower Providence, and 

lower Bull meteorology 

stations

5.7.3 Stream Water 

Chemistrya

ISCO 6712 samplers Wet season: 2 per month, 

plus storm based sampling

1 point / watershed,

10 watersheds
Final Environmental Impact Statement Kings River Experimental Watershed Project

Appendix A A-4

Grab samples Dry season: 1 per month, 

plus storm based sampling

5.8 Riparian 

Vegetation

20 m Transect perpendicular to stream 

 Herbs – % cover by species using 4 1X1 m 

 quadrats located along transect line with 2 at 

 stream bank. 

 Shrubs – % cover by species using the line-

 intercept method at every 1 m along the line.

 Trees - % cover, density and recruitment by 

 species using a 10X20 m belt transect along 

 the 20 m transect.

Annual

2007 skipped

1 transect every 200 m, 

5-10 transect per 

watershed

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Measurement 

category

Measurement Frequency Spatial unit

5.8 Upland 

Vegetation

20 m Transect at random azimuth

 Herbs – % cover by species using 4 1X1 m 

 quadrats located along transect line with 2 at 

 stream bank. 

 Shrubs – % cover by species using the line-

 intercept method at every 1m along the line.

 Trees - % cover, density and recruitment by 

 species using a 10X20 m belt transect along 

 the 20 m transect.

Annual

2007 skipped

Watershed divided into 

equal-sized partitions, 

with 2 random transects 

per partition, resulting in 

6-12 transects per 

watershed. The 

beginning of the transect 

is placed on permanent 

grid points.

5.8 Fuels Two 20 m transects according to Brown’s planar intercept 

method with one transect path same as vegetation 

transect and second transect at N+120° to first

Once before treatment (2006) 

and at least once after each 

treatment

Same as upland 

vegetation
Final Environmental Impact Statement Kings River Experimental Watershed Project

Appendix A A-5

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Measurement 

category

Measurement Frequency Spatial unit

5.10 Stream 

Invertebrates

30-cm wide D-frame net, 250-micron mesh

Taxa identified to genus (a few only to phylum, order, 

family)

Annual in spring (June), 2

years fall (September) 

sample also

2007 skipped

100 m reach / stream 

where 3 riffles and 3 

pools are randomly 

sampled

5.11 Algae / 

Periphyton

USGS sampling 2002 at 7 streams, 2006 at 12 streams

Community structure

Rock scrapings

Biomass (measured as chlorophyll-a, pheophytin-a, 

and ash-free-dry mass)

Twice before treatment same 

time as invertebrate samples, 

perhaps twice after treatment

100 m reach / stream 

used for sampling, colocated, at a riffle, with 

the invertebrate reach

Yosemite toad Tracking of adult toad movement

Groundwater depth, water temperature, pH, and EC

Spring and summer, 2007, 

2008, 2009

Spring into fall, 2009, 2010

5 meadows at Bull Site

aChemistry measurements in field: pH, temperature, and conductivity using Oakton probes.

Chemistry analyses done at Forest Service Riverside laboratory on unfiltered, frozen water.

Cations: calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium

Anions: chloride, sulfate

Nutrients: ammonium, nitrate, and phosphate

This table is from the KREW research Study Plan (www.fs.fed.us/psw/programs/snrc/water/kingsriver