Approach
Water moves through surface and subsurface flow pathways, some permanent and others more dynamic. Shifts in precipitation timing and intensity are expected to alter water flow pathways and result in more frequent low or zero flow days in drier seasons. This could transform perennial networks to intermittent, and especially affect ephemeral and intermittent systems known to have less water storage potential (e.g. headwater catchments). As the climate continues to change, addressing hydrologic connectivity in forest management may help to sustain water quality and storage, enhance the transfer of sediment and nutrients, and offer thermal protection and migration pathways for organisms.
Tactics
- Mechanically treat compacted soils to help restore natural patterns of hydrologic flow.
- Replace undersized stream-crossings that constrict streamflow and inhibits aquatic organism passage between upstream and downstream water sources to enhance organism movement into more favorable habitats (e.g. seasonal habitats, off-channel or cool-water)
- Design drainage structures and road-stream crossings to adequately pass projected high and low flows.
- Redirect roads and other infrastructure such as skid trails, trails and facilities to areas away from ephemeral or permanent surface waters, particularly facilities located on steep slopes that might influence erosion and runoff during heavy rain or extreme events.
Strategy
Strategy Text
This strategy seeks to sustain fundamental watershed functions, addressing the maintenance of and restoration of soil-water connections and hydrologic function. A shift in climate may amplify and exacerbate existing ecosystem challenges resulting from land-uses that have fragmented, altered or obstructed water flow pathways. Sustaining hydrologic and ecosystem functions into the future is likely to depend on management planning that seeks to maintain the long-term conveyance of water through unobstructed hydrologic pathways, most notably actions that promote the enhancement of water infiltration by porous forest soils.
Shannon, P.D.; Swanston, C.W.; Janowiak, M.K.; Handler, S.D.; Schmitt, K.M.; Brandt, L.A.; Butler-Leopold, P.R.; Ontl, T.A. (in review). Adaptation Strategies and Approaches for Forested Watersheds. Ecological Applications.,