Local scale interventions dominate over catchment scale controls to accelerate the recovery of a degraded stream.

ABSTRACT: A premise of stream restoration theory and practice is that it is often futile to attempt to restore a stream at the reach scale (101-103 metres) until catchment scale problems have been addressed. This study considers reach scale restoration actions undertaken in Bryan Creek, a sand bed river in south east Australia impacted by a sediment pulse, after catchment sediment sources have been addressed. Local scale interventions, which were in-stream sand extraction, fencing to exclude stock and riparian revegetation, were evaluated by quantifying cross-section and thalweg variability, mapping in-stream and riparian vegetation and by classifying the morphology that emerged following each intervention. Following intervention channel reaches moved to one of three distinct states: simple clay bed

SUBMITTER: Sims AJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8211276 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature