Grantee Research Project Results
Final Report: Development of an Integrated Scientific and Technological Framework for Stream Naturalization
EPA Grant Number: R827148Title: Development of an Integrated Scientific and Technological Framework for Stream Naturalization
Investigators: Rhoads, Bruce L. , Herricks, Edwin E. , Wilson, David , Garcia, Marcelo
Institution: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
EPA Project Officer: Chung, Serena
Project Period: October 1, 1998 through September 30, 2001
Project Amount: $881,913
RFA: Water and Watersheds (1998) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Water , Watersheds
Objective:
The specific objectives of this research project are to: (1) develop and test a set of dynamic, process-based, multiscale analysis and modeling methods, which integrate ecological, geomorphological, and engineering information to effectively predict fluvial and habitat dynamics of human-modified stream systems; (2) examine the social processes that define the content of a community's environmental vision and that influence the effective incorporation of scientific and technical information in community-based decision-making; (3) determine the extent to which specific stream-naturalization strategies that fulfill the environmental objectives of a local community also are sustainable, given the fluvial and ecological conditions of the watershed; and (4) explore how community-based environmental preferences shape and, in turn, how they are shaped by science and technology as preferences emerge and translate into specific environmental designs.
Fulfillment of these objectives will generate an improved capacity to: (1) detect, explain, and forecast the effects of particular naturalization schemes on the environmental quality of a stream system at multiple spatial and temporal scales; and (2) assess, explain, and anticipate the extent to which scientific-technical information is incorporated into community-based decision-making about stream naturalization.
Field Sites
Two catchments near Chicago, IL, served as urban field sites for the development of an integrated scientific and technological framework for stream naturalization. The Upper Embarras River near Urbana-Champaign, IL, served as a rural field site. Together, the three sites encompass different types of naturalization strategies. The two urban catchments include a highly constrained channelized steam, where naturalization has been achieved through the addition of in-channel pool-riffle sequences without channel realignment, and a channelized stream, where naturalization will focus on remeandering of the straightened channel.
Stream naturalization has been completed at the Northbrook site. The channel at Northbrook is tightly constrained within a channelized corridor through a heavily urbanized area. There is no scope for plan form change here; however, efforts to improve the bed structure at the site have provided a more diverse morphologic, flow, and habitat environment, while concurrently increasing the aesthetic value of a stream channel that has been neglected and abused in previous years.
The Poplar Creek is the focus of a stream-remeandering effort. Aspirations for the naturalization of this site also involve a return of the floodplain to wet-sedge prairie and/or bottomland forest. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE) is currently conducting detailed engineering design analysis to produce design and project specifications of the remeandering work at the site.
Detailed field measurements of geomorphological and ecological conditions along various reaches of the Upper Embarras River provided a context for the calibration and verification of numerical modeling procedures that are being used for design purposes for the Chicago sites.
Summary/Accomplishments (Outputs/Outcomes):
At each study site, the research design followed a three-phase action plan: (1) Phase 1, site reconnaissance, survey and mapping operations, and historical analysis (using geographic information system (GIS) applications); (2) Phase 2, the establishment of a field infrastructure for process-based field measurements of geomorphological and ecological conditions; and (3) Phase 3, systematic data collection (relating to flow and channel characteristics, velocity measurements, sediment sampling, and ecological sampling). All three phases have been completed for each site. In addition, numerical experiments have been conducted for each site using mathematical models.
Research for the Northbrook site involved the: (1) development of an innovative pool-riffle design for straight urban streams; (2) evaluation of the hydraulic performance of the structures relative to geomorphological understanding of pool-riffle dynamics using numerical modeling and physical modeling; (3) evaluation of the influence of the structure on stream hydrological response, especially flow stage; and (4) field investigation of morphological, sedimentological, and habitat conditions within the Northbrook North Branch of the West Fork of the Chicago River (NBWFCR); and (5) post-construction evaluation of geomorphological and ecological conditions in the naturalized section of the NBWFCR.
The main focus of engineering analysis is the development and testing of a naturalized pool-riffle design for straight urban streams. The design was extensively tested for differing flow stages, using numerical modeling protocols. In addition to numerical modeling, a 1:7 Froude-scale physical model consisting of three consecutive structures was constructed in a flume at University's Hydrosystems Laboratory. We conducted experiments to evaluate the hydrodynamics of the structure in comparison with pools and riffles in a natural stream and with 3-Dimensional (3-D) numerical simulations of flow through the experimental units. Measured velocities in these experiments generally conformed to model predictions.
Geomorphological analysis involved the field surveying of channel conditions, development of a design for the pool-riffle structures based on geomorphological principles, participation in the engineering analysis of pool-riffle performance, and post-implementation measurements of channel conditions and 3-D flow structure within the completed pool-riffle units. Geomorphological principles provided the basis for an initial pool-riffle design for the straightened Northbrook channel. This design was modified based on ecological and engineering considerations. We developed an initial design from the bar-unit concept, which proposes that bar units are the fundamental bed forms in meandering and straight stream channels. In straight channels, bar units alternate on either side of the channel in the downstream direction and include pools, riffles, and alternate bars as bar elements. In meandering channels, the bar units wrap around meander bends and include pools, riffles, and point bars as bar elements. Bar units have been implicated in the process of meandering through the bar-bend theory of meander.
Surveys of the longitudinal profile before and after the construction of the pool-riffle structures show how the installation of the structures greatly enhances the abundance of pool habitat. Detailed mapping of the pools and riffles was conducted in May of 2002, and we obtained measurements of 3-D velocity components from several cross sections within three of the pool-riffle structures in June of 2002. These data provide the basis for comparing the morphology and hydraulic performance of the as-built structures with the morphology and hydraulic performance of ideal structures that conform to the design concept tested through numerical and physical modeling. Analysis of these data has yet to be completed, but is in progress.
We conducted a detailed habitat assessment of the site in June of 1999 to provide the context for the evaluation of the extant fish community in the study reach. We conducted annual fish sampling at four locations within the study reach. We collected three of the samples prior to pool-riffle construction (1999, 2000, and 2001), and one sample was collected following pool-riffle construction (2002). Base flow conditions for each set of samples were similar. Prior to the construction of the pools and riffles, the fish community and the reach was highly depauperate. Most available fish were located in scarce, deep pool habitats associated mainly with scour holes at storm sewer outfalls or around bridge abutments. Installation of the pool-riffle structures has enhanced the number, size, and diversity of fish in the study reach.
The objective of the social analysis at Northbrook is to examine the politics of river-based redevelopment, focusing on the municipal decision to redevelop the downtown area around the river. Open-ended interviews targeted planners, municipal officials, prominent business people, and involved citizens to assess local power arrangements of Northbrook and the motivation of key factors to use the river in desired ways. Findings indicate that the community views the river as a focus and a center point for a broader downtown restructuring effort. In this case, the natural system has been effectively seized by the local political process as a vehicle for improvement of the community's physical environment.
The emphasis at Poplar Creek focused on the need to understand the dominant processes operating in the fluvial system to effectively remeander the channelized section of the creek. Field investigations at the site focused on the role of large woody debris (LWD) in the geomorphology and ecology of Poplar Creek, whereas engineering analysis has been conducted to evaluate channel stability following remeandering. GIS analysis of rectified digital aerial photographs revealed that channel position is exceedingly stable. This stability can be attributed to the low gradient of the system (the slope of the straight section is 0.000958) and secondly, to low stream power values. We collected 3-D flow characteristics for both low- and high-flow conditions at three bends at the site. One measurement was obtained before and after LWD was cleared from the bend. The presence of LWD influences local flow characteristics significantly, thus determining hydraulic habitat conditions and streambed morphology. Mapping of woody debris pieces within the study section also was performed in 2000-2001. Transportation rates of LWD through the system can be high during periods of high flow, and channelized sections of the stream transport LWD more efficiently than meandering sections.
Engineering analysis focused on numerical simulations of channel dynamics for various remeandering scenarios. The model MEANDER was used to generate numerical simulations of channel migration for four different remeandering scenarios. The degree of stability predicted by the model was very high, even with maximum migration rates for the four alternatives ranging from 2.7 to 6.4 m over a simulation interval of 100 years. These simulations were provided to engineering staff at the Chicago District Office of the USACOE, who currently is developing engineering design plans and construction specifications for the remeandering project.
We began community-level fishery sampling in the fall of 1999 during site setup activities. The purpose of this preliminary sampling campaign was to gather general information about the fish community in the system. Fish sampling has been a targeted effort to correlate fish presence and abundance with the 3-D flow conditions and LWD being measured by the geomorphology team. Examples of fish sampled include Bluegill, Green Sunfish, Largemouth Bass, Sand Shiner, Bluntnose Minnows, and Banded Darters. In addition to fish sampling, a benthic invertebrate sampling campaign was conducted between the spring of 2000 and the fall of 2001. Examples of the order-level of invertebrates found are: Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Tricoptera, Coleoptera, Odonata, and Diptera.
Central to the social analysis at Poplar Creek is the ideological focus on discourses of environmental-resource provision. Open-ended interviews began in the summer of 2000 and included watershed residents, city officials, local planners, and the main resource providers (e.g., the Nature Conservancy, Illinois Nature Preserves Commission) that are the primary stakeholders responsible for resource provision. The interviews suggest that provision of resources may not be addressing the needs and wants of the majority of the population of the area; rather, it addresses the visions of a minority who are interested and invested in the local environment.
This project laid the foundation for an integrated scientific and technical framework for stream naturalization in urban settings. It developed a suite of modeling and analysis tools that can be used to evaluate, in an integrated fashion, geomorphological, ecological, and engineering aspects of stream naturalization. Moreover, by examining community-based attitudes and processes related to river redevelopment and to environmental discourse, it has initiated linkages between social and technical/scientific dimensions of naturalization.
Journal Articles on this Report : 4 Displayed | Download in RIS Format
Other project views: | All 43 publications | 5 publications in selected types | All 4 journal articles |
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Type | Citation | ||
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Huang X, Garcia MH. Pollution of gravel spawning grounds by deposition of suspended sediment. Journal of Environmental Engineering 2000;126(10):963-967. |
R827148 (Final) |
not available |
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Rhoads BL, Wilson D, Urban M, Herricks EE. Interaction between scientists and nonscientists in community-based watershed management: emergence of the concept of stream naturalization. Environmental Management 1999;24(3):297-308. |
R827148 (Final) R825306 (1998) R825306 (Final) |
Exit Exit Exit |
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Rodriguez JF, Bombardelli FA, Garcia MH, Frothingham KM, Rhoads BL, Abad JD. High-resolution numerical simulation of flow through a highly sinuous river reach. Water Resources Management 2004;18(3):177-199. |
R827148 (Final) |
not available |
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Wade RJ, Rhoads BL, Rodriguez J, Daniels M, Wilson D, Herricks EE, Bombardelli F, Garcia M, Schwartz J. Integrating science and technology to support stream naturalization near Chicago, Illinois. Journal of the American Water Resources Association 2002;38(4):931-944. |
R827148 (Final) |
not available |
Supplemental Keywords:
aquatic ecology, ecosystems, restoration, watersheds, integrated assessment, Midwest, social science, community-based, decision-making, Illinois, IL, Embarras River, Chicago, Chicago River, alternative urbanization scenarios, anthropogenic processes, aquatic ecosystems, aquatic habitat protection, biodiversity, conservation, ecology assessment models, geomorphic, human-dominated systems, stable fluvial systems, stakeholder feedback, stream ecosystems, stream naturalization, suburban watersheds., RFA, Scientific Discipline, Water, Geographic Area, Hydrology, Water & Watershed, State, Civil/Environmental Engineering, Ecology and Ecosystems, Environmental Engineering, Watersheds, anthropogenic processes, alternative urbanization scenarios, biodiversity, stream naturalization, suburban watersheds, valuation of watersheds, human-dominated systems, stream ecosystems, decision making, conservation, stable fluvial systems, Illinois (IL), aquatic ecosystems, geomorphic, ecology assessment models, stakeholder feedbackProgress and Final Reports:
Original AbstractThe perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.