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Title: Riparian Cottonwood Ecosystems and Regulated Flows in Kootenai and Yakima Sub-Basins : Volume III (Overview and Tools).

Technical Report ·
DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/795792· OSTI ID:795792

Riparian vegetation and especially cottonwood and willow plant communities are dependent on normative flows and especially, spring freshette, to provide conditions for recruitment. These plant communities therefore share much in common with a range of fish species that require natural flow conditions to stimulate reproduction. We applied tools and techniques developed in other areas to assess riparian vegetation in two very different sub-basins within the Columbia Basin. Our objectives were to: Document the historic impact of human activity on alluvial floodplain areas in both sub-basins; Provide an analysis of the impacts of flow regulation on riparian vegetation in two systems with very different flow regulation systems; Demonstrate that altered spring flows will, in fact, result in recruitment to cottonwood stands, given other land uses impacts on each river and the limitations imposed by other flow requirements; and Assess the applicability of remote sensing tools for documenting the distribution and health of cottonwood stands and riparian vegetation that can be used in other sub-basins.

Research Organization:
Bonneville Power Administration, Portland, OR (US)
Sponsoring Organization:
US Department of Energy (US)
DOE Contract Number:
00000005
OSTI ID:
795792
Report Number(s):
DOE/BP-00000005-1; TRN: US200212%%299
Resource Relation:
Other Information: PBD: 1 Oct 2001
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English