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Abstract
Managers of the Prescott National Forest are obliged to evaluate the conditions of watersheds under their jurisdiction in order to guide informed decisions concerning grazing allotments, forest and woodland management, restoration treatments, and other management initiatives. Watershed condition has been delineated by contrasts between “good” and “poor” conditions (DeBano and Schmidt 1989). Good condition is characterized by vegetation and litter cover that is capable of absorbing precipitation, temporarily storing it, and slowly releasing it through a network of channels with minimal drainage density. Poor condition applies to areas where precipitation induces soil erosion and rapid sediment-laden runoff through an expanding network of channels. Evaluations of watershed condition face substantial challenges in attempting to determine a reference condition, the extent of departure from that condition, causes of that departure, and management actions that can return the watershed back toward the reference condition (McCammon and others 1998). These challenges are particularly great in watersheds of the arid and semi-arid Southwest, where flashy, sediment-laden runoff is a common natural condition.
Parent Publication
Citation
Neary, Daniel G.; Long, Jonathan W.; Baker, Malchus B., Jr. 2012. Watershed condition [Chapter 4]. In: Neary, Daniel G.; Medina, Alvin L.; Rinne, John N., eds. 2012. Synthesis of Upper Verde River research and monitoring 1993-2008. Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-GTR-291. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 97-112.
