Verge Vegetation

1
Verge Vegetation

• What to look for
• Temporary or permanent disturbances
• Hiking trails
• Bare spots
• Anywhere that should have vegetation and does not
• Holes in the canopy

2
Verge Vegetation
3
Bank Vegetation

• What to look for
• Is there vegetation on the bank?
• Should there be?
• Is the vegetation being disturbed?
• Foot traffic?
• High water?
• Other disturbances?

4
Bank Vegetation
5
Bare Soil On Bank

• What to look for
• In 10m, what percent of your bank is just exposed
  soil?
• Rocks?
• Vegetation?

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Bare Soil on Bank
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Bank Erosion

• What to look for
• Undercutting where the rapid flow of water
  carries soil from the bottom of the bank, causing
  the top to overhang the water and become
  unstable.
• Undercutting Bank Failure Greater
  Sedimentation

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Bank Erosion
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Bank Slumping and Movement

• What to look for
• Parts of verge that have collapsed onto bank
• Trees leaning towards water with exposed root
  systems
• Verge melting like ice cream onto bank

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Bank Slumping and Movement
11
Bends and Riffles

• What to look for
• Count riffles and bends in your 10m
• If no more than one or two, expand count to 50m
• Snags

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Bends and Riffles
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Aquatic Vegetation

• What to look for
• Some aquatic vegetation that is not hindering
  flow of stream
• No vegetation bad
• Too much bad

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Aquatic Vegetation
15
Sediment Deposition

• What to look for
• Look at stream bottom, do you see
• Color and shape of rocks?
• Shape of rocks?
• Everything covered in sand, many bars?
• Mudflats?

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Sediment Deposition