Headwater Streams, Forest Harvest and Nutrient Export

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Headwater Streams, Forest Harvest and Nutrient
Export
Garrett Liles1, Robert Edmonds1, Daniel Vogt1,
Jeff Richey2, Richard Bigley3 and Pete Bisson4 UW
College of Forest Resources1, UW College of Ocean
and Fishery Sciences2, WA Department of Natural
Resources3 and USFS Pacific Northwest Research
Station-Olympia, WA4
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• The Issue at Hand Balance of
• Multiple Uses and Needs
• Habitat Conservation
• Overall System Integrity

With Forest Harvest
and disturbance to soil and aquatic resources
from these activities
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HCP and Riparian Buffer Configuration
Is there need for protection (buffers) of
forested headwater streams in western
Washington???
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State
Scaling Down to the Headwater Basin
Capitol Forest
Waddell Creek Watershed
Headwater Basin
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Miles and Miles of Small Streams
gt 50 of Stream Mileage!!!
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• Capitol Forest
• 40,000 ha
• Douglas fir/Western Hemlock
• Mosaic of variable aged stands.
• Generally between 0 and lt 80 years
• Administered by the WADNR

Project Goals Characterize physical and chemical
parameters of headwater streams for basic
understanding and model development/calibration.
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Corner Stone of Watershed Research
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Basic Experimental Design
ICP Analysis Al, As, B, Ba, Ca, Cd, Cr, Cu,
Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Pb, S, Se, Si, Zn
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5 year Stand Conditions
3 m
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15 year Stand Conditions
12 m
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80 year Stand Conditions
35 m
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Waddell Creek
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Preliminary Data
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Total Nitrogen
-- 5 yr --15 yr --Control --Waddell
Nitrate-N
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Total Nitrogen
-- 5 yr --15 yr --Control --Waddell
Ammonium-N
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Total Organic Carbon
-- 5 yr --15 yr --Control --Waddell
Sum Base Cations
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General Trends
80 yr
5 yr
Waddell Creek
15 yr
Total Nitrogen/Nitrate-N
Low
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General Trends
5 yr
80 yr
15 yr
Waddell Creek
Total Organic Carbon
Low
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General Trends
80 yr
5 yr
15 yr
Waddell Creek
Sum of Base Cations
Low
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Other Aspects

• Soils Data (C/N, CEC, Base Saturation etc.) for
  three basins (one of 5, 15 and Control)
• DOC and DIC data coming soon
• Application of data to hydrologic/Geochemical
  Model
• Analysis of hydrologic data
• Foundation of future studies on effectiveness of
  riparian buffers (more site/weirs installed this
  summer)

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Summary and Implications

• Low nutrient concentrations for all basins and
  treatments
• Modeling activities will provide a powerful tool
  for managers at gt spatial scales
• Valuable data concerning many acres of forest
  land in western Washington (WADNR HCP)
• Buffering is important for landscape connectivity
  but for chemistry we dont know yet!!!

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Thanks and Support

• Support and Help
• Porranee Rattanaviwatpong-Modeling
• DNR Technical and Field Staff
• Dongsen Xue- Analytical Support
• Gurus at PRISM/VSB
• Many Others

• Committee Members
• Drs
• Richard Bigley
• Pete Bisson
• Robert Edmonds
• Jeff Richey
• Daniel Vogt

• Funding
• USDA Forest Service- PNW Research Lab Olympia
• Washington State DNR
• Olympic Natural Resource Center
• Center for Water and Watershed Studies
• UW PRISM

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Questions????