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Water yields resulting from treatments on the Workman Creek Experimental Watersheds in central Arizona
Author(s) -
Rich Lowell R.,
Gottfried Gerald J.
Publication year - 1976
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1029/wr012i005p01053
Subject(s) - hydrology (agriculture) , riparian zone , environmental science , surface runoff , watershed , forestry , basal area , riparian forest , acre , geography , agroforestry , geology , ecology , biology , geotechnical engineering , machine learning , habitat , computer science
The three Workman Creek watersheds were instrumented to determine the hydrology of mixed conifer forests and to determine the changes in streamflow and sedimentation as a result of manipulating the forest vegetation. A small riparian cut on North Fork did not increase water yields. A selection timber harvest, improvement cut, and fire which removed 45% of the basal area on South Fork increased yields slightly. In contrast, converting 32.4 ha (80 acres) of moist site forest to grass significantly increased water yields on the 100.4‐ha (248 acre) North Fork watershed. Water yields were increased even more after 40.5 ha (100 acres) of dry site pine forest were converted to grass. An increase of 69 mm (2.70 in.), or 84%, of expected runoff resulted from the combined treatment. Clearing 83% of the South Fork watershed preparatory to planting ponderosa pine significantly increased water yields by 93 mm (3.67 in.), or by 111%.