Stream Measuring & Mapping Training Workshop

1. Stream Measuring & Mapping Training Workshop August 3, 2014

2. Outline for Today • Introduction to the Huron River Watershed Council and the Adopt-A-Stream Program • Why Measure and Map? • The measurements • Team organization • To the stream!

3. The Huron River Watershed Council… …is a nonprofit coalition of communities and residents. …was established under state law in 1965. …protects the Huron River and its tributary streams, lakes, wetlands, groundwater and watershed.

4. What does HRWC do? • Citizen education & stream monitoring • Work with local governments • Stormwater Requirements • Planning • Mass media education and information • Stream restoration projects • Run a statewide monitoring network (MiCorps) • Defend the river, wherever it is needed

5. Huron River Watershed What is a Watershed? A watershed (or basin) is the area of surrounding land that drains into a river or creek. • 900 square miles • 63 communities • 7 counties • >525,000 people

6. Adopt-A-Stream Program

7. River RoundUp

8. Aquatic Insects Tell Us the Condition of the River And Habitat conditions can help us understand the aquatic insects

9. Outline for Today • Introduction to the Huron River Watershed Council and the Adopt-A-Stream Program • Why Measure and Map? • The measurements • Team organization • To the stream!

10. Measuring and Mapping You will be assessing the quality of the stream habitat. • The measurements you take will be used to. . • look for immediate problems • document changes in quality • S interpret the biological data • S compare sites Diagram from Aquatic Entomology by W.P.McCafferty and A.V Provonsha

11. Measuring the severity of human impacts to the physical environment of the stream • Channel cutting and widening; erosion • Sedimentation (too much sand and fine particles) • Channelization- loss of microhabitats • Loss of vegetation- riparian and instream

12. Major cause: Hydrology alteration • Impervious surface • Flashiness

13. Outline for Today • Introduction to the Huron River Watershed Council and the Adopt-A-Stream Program • Why Measure and Map? • The measurements • Team organization • To the stream!

14. Logistics of “Measuring and Mapping” • Attend this training • Join a team • The team picks a date for the event • Do the event (2-3 hours) • Return the gear

15. What You’ll Look For 150 feet of Transects Shape of channel & bank Substrate for hiding places 300 feet of Observations The way the water flows (Pools, Riffles, Bends) Bare or eroded banks Plants in stream and on bank

16. What is a transect? Stretch the tape measure across the stream

17. Transects – Depth and substrate • 10 transects, 15 feet apart. • Measure depth and bottom type at intervals across each transect. • Aim to have 10-15 measurements per transect (divided up evenly)

18. Boulder -- more than 10” length or width or diameter Bigger or equal to adult head Cobble -- 2.5 - 10” Size of a fist Child’s head Rock -- 1 - 2.5” Half of a finger Size of a small fist Gravel -- up to about an inch Child and Adult Fingernails Sand -- fine particles, all about the same tiny size, gritty Fines: Clay or Muck -- finer than sand and not gritty, can’t even see individual grains

19. (Tape measure) Hashmark is a “substrate check” Overview

20. Transects – Waters edge width, active channel width Active Edge The waters edge width is the width of the water. The active channel is the area of normal water flow. The active channel edge is the bottom edge of vegetation on the bank.

21. Example: Active Channel on Arms Creek

22. Bank Angle Transects – Bank angle

23. Transects – Bank angle Bank Angle

24. Transects – Bank angle (undercut banks) Bank Angle

25. What You’ll Look For 150 feet-Transects Shape of Channel – Transects Substrate for Hiding Places Bank Angles 300 feet- Observations The way the water flows (Pools, Riffles, Bends) Bare or Eroded Banks Plants in Stream and on Bank

26. Pools. An area of water deeper and slower than average. Often found on outside of bends where there is more erosion. Pools, riffles, bends 2 bends pool pool This is an idealized rule of thumb

27. Riffle. An area of choppy or turbulent water. Often shallower water than the average depth of stream. Often caused by rocks or obstructions in the water. Sometimes on the inside of bends where it tends to be shallow. Pools, riffles, bends 2 bends This is an idealized rule of thumb

28. III.Stream Substrate: Embeddedness Tips: • Look in a riffle (preferred) or fast moving area • Pull a cobble or boulder out to see how much of it is buried

29. V. Bank Stability: % Bare Banks What % of the banks are bare (showing soil) ABOVE the Active Edge? Look at the bank bare areas above the Active Edge Active Edge Where to look for bare areas Shaded area Bare areas are shaded and appear to be about 25% of the area between the Active Edge the top of the bank

30. How is all of this used? Survey Protocol for Wadable Streams and Rivers

31. How is all of this used? 1) Your direct observations tell us of immediate problems. 2) Tracking long term changes • 11 Metrics Add up to 200 points • Divide by 2 • Final Score: 5 (Habitat really poor) – 100 (Habitat is excellent) Metrics include: Flashiness Maintained Flow Volume Velocity and Depth Sediment Deposition Embeddedness Habitat Variety Bottom Substrate, Available Cover Riparian Vegetative Zone Width Bank Stability Erosion Resistance Channel Alteration

32. You will have access to previous maps. A new map is only needed if the old one is inaccurate, ugly, or hard to understand. In that case- do a better job than your predecessor! Mapping Your Stream

33. TAKE PICTURES!!!!!!!!!!!!! And give them to us! Be sure to include people and faces in your pictures as well as pictures of the creek.

34. Safety • Measure and map during low water levels • You will need to wait 2 days or so after really torrential downpours. Minor rain doesn’t matter. • Do only what you feel comfortable doing

35. What not to wear on your feet If you expect to stay dry, wear waders. Tall boots are not good enough on 95% of the streams we are studying. Doing a study with boots filled with water is NOT fun. You may NOT go barefoot Do NOT wear flip-flops. You MUST wear waders in Ann Arbor area and also Mill Creek. 1) Wear Waders OR 2) wear shoes/secure sandals that can get wet

36. Outline for Today • Introduction to the Huron River Watershed Council and the Adopt-A-Stream Program • Why Measure and Map? • The measurements • Team organization • To the creek!

37. Team Positions Goal: 3-5 people • 1 Mapper/Picture Taker • 1 Note taker • 2-3 Measurers (holding and moving tape measure, taking substrate samples)

38. Meet your team • In the next 10 MINUTES: Gather with your team by your site name. • Introduce yourselves again • Get your binder from Paul • Make sure your contact info is right. • Everyone take a color map • The binder is holding your blank datasheets

39. Fill out the team form • If your whole group is here today, you can fill out the team form (your date, who does what, etc…) • Give Paul or Jason a copy of the filled out form • In your whole team isn’t here, in the next two days, email each other to answer the questions on your team form. • Email psteen@hrwc.org and jfrenzel@hrwc.org with your final decisions.

40. Planning your dates • Measurements MUST be done under NORMAL or LOW FLOW conditions. Plan a rain date, and keep it open in case of high water. • ALSO: Please try to do 2 outings if possible! After your first outing, talk to your team about another date that would work and be in touch with Jason and Paul who will assign you a different site.

41. Day of the event: • Come to back door of this building • Find the hidden key to the shed • Get equipment from the shed (make sure you put in your wader/foot size to whoever picks up the equipment) • Return the hidden key to its location • Return your equipment ASAP. • Leave your binder and its contents in the shed

42. Outline for Today • Introduction to the Huron River Watershed Council and the Adopt-A-Stream Program • Why Measure and Map? • The measurements • Team organization • To the creek! But first, let’s take a walk to the shed. At the creek, bring your pink datasheet with you.