Surface runoff and erosion from pine grasslands of the Colorado Front Range

Abstract

In the Colorado Front Range, intensity of land use must be gaged with special care to maintain acceptable watershed conditions. Sparse cover, unstable soils, and intense summer rains compound the difficulties characterizing multiple-use management. Water from the Front Range is acutely needed in the adjacent Great Plains, but its quality and regularity of flow have long since been impaired by heavy grazing and unrestricted timber cutting. While such activities can very likely be continued at a reduced scale, it is important to establish the limits dictated by good watershed management. A measure of these limits is being obtained from two small studies, described herein, which concern the influence of cattle grazing and timberland disturbance on runoff and erosion.

Citation

Dunford, E. G. 1954. Surface runoff and erosion from pine grasslands of the Colorado Front Range. Journal of Forestry. 52(12): 923-927.