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Sediment Deposition in the Flood Plain of Stemple Creek Watershed, Northern California

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Sediment Deposition in the Flood Plain of Stemple Creek Watershed, Northern California Geomorphology 61 (2004) 347–360 www.elsevier.com/locate/geomorph Sediment deposition in the flood plain of Stemple Creek Watershed, northern California Jerry C. Ritchiea,*, Vernon L. Finneyb, Kenneth J. Osterc, Carole A. Ritchied a USDA ARS Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA b USDA NRCS California State Office, Davis, CA 95616, USA c USDA NRCS Templeton Service Center, Templeton, CA 93465, USA d Botanical Consultant, Laurel, MD 20708, USA Received 16 July 2003; received in revised form 27 January 2004; accepted 30 January 2004 Available online 10 May 2004 Abstract Over the past 150 years, major land use changes have occurred in the Stemple Creek Watershed in northern California that have caused erosion to move soils from the upland to the flood plain, stream channels, and the bay. The purpose of this study is to document the recent (1954 to present) sediment deposition patterns in the flood plain area adjacent to Stemple Creek using the 137Cesium technique. Sediment deposition ranged from 0.26 to 1.84 cm yearÀ 1 for the period from 1964 to 2002 with an average of 0.85 F 0.41 cm yearÀ 1. Sediment deposition rates were higher for the 1954 to 1964 period with a range of 0.31– 3.50 cm yearÀ 1 and an average of 1.29 F 1.04 cm yearÀ 1. These data indicate that sediment deposition in the flood plain has decreased since the middle 1950s, probably related to reduction in row crop agriculture and an increase in pasturelands. This study shows that the flood plains in the Stemple Creek Watershed are a significant sink for the soils being eroded from the upland area. Given the significance of the flood plain for trapping eroded materials before they reach the stream channels or the bay, efforts need to be made to manage these flood plain areas to insure that they do not change and become a source rather than a sink for eroded materials as improved management practices on the upland areas reduce sediment input to the flood plain. D 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Flood plain; Deposition; Erosion; 137Cesium; California 1. Introduction the areas adjacent to the stream channel of the Stemple Creek Watershed. Much of these lower slopes Over the past 150 years, major changes have and bottomlands were cleared and drained for agri- occurred in the land use patterns in the Stemple Creek culture in the 1860s. Erosion accelerated under these Watershed in northern California. Riparian forests and conditions and stream channels and bays filled with marshes are believed to have been more widespread in sediment, further reducing the area occupied by ripar- ian forests and marshes (Harvey, 1990). * Corresponding author. Tel.: +1-301-504-7940; fax: 1-301- Stemple Creek is part of the coastal lands in the 504-8930. Bodega Bay–Tomales Bay area that has a long history E-mail address: [email protected] (J.C. Ritchie). of erosion and sedimentation problems. Geologically, 0169-555X/$ - see front matter D 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2004.01.009 348 J.C. Ritchie et al. / Geomorphology 61 (2004) 347–360 the California coastal range is young and still uplifting. occurring inland truncated the drainage (Prunuske- A coastal uplift rate of 0.07–0.08 cm yearÀ 1 has been Chatham, 1994). The present low gradient stream calculated for the Point Reyes Peninsula, CA (K. system (0.000415 m mÀ 1) is conducive to deposition, Grove, Department of Geoscience, San Francisco confirmed by sediment in-filled stream channels in the University, personal communication, 2001). The hills upper watershed. As Stemple Creek flows coastward, are therefore prone to landslides, slumping, and ero- the fjord-like qualities of steep and twisting uplands sion contributing to high naturally occurring erosion become the dominating character of the landscape. rates. In addition, historically the combination of row Finney (2002) used the AGricultural NonPoint crop agriculture, cultivation, and year-round grazing Source (AGNPS) model to estimate soil loss for four on moderately erodible Steinbeck (Mollic Haploxer- land use scenarios and estimated that 11% of the alfs), Sebastopol (Typic Haploxerults), and Tomales eroded material from the uplands reached the bay. (Ultic Paleustalfs) soils has resulted in erosion on the The purpose of this study is to document the recent watershed with subsequent sediment deposition in the (1954 to present) sediment deposition patterns in the flood plains, stream channels, and bays causing loss of flood plain area adjacent to Stemple Creek using open water. In the late 19th and early 20th century, the radioactive fallout 137Cesium (137Cs) dating tech- Estero Americano, north of Estero de San Antonio, was nique. Using 137Cs, sediment layers deposited in a navigable waterway used to ship produce from the 1954 and 1964 can be determined and sedimentation area. Today, the Estero is too shallow for large boats. rates and patterns can be determined (Ritchie and During the middle to late 1880s, the land was used McHenry, 1990; Walling and He, 1993; Walling et al., for growing a wide variety of crops. In the early to 1999). mid-1900s, potatoes were grown extensively. Farming over the last 50 years has evolved to primarily dairy operations and grazing of sheep, beef cattle, and 2. Study area replacement dairy heifers. Grazing pressure has been reduced from historic high levels; but where animals 2.1. Setting and landscape are concentrated for extended periods or where soils are wet, livestock continue to cause erosion problems. Stemple Creek Watershed is located in Marin and This is more prominent in the upper flood plain Sonoma Counties on the northern California coast and reaches of the watershed. Restoration and conserva- covers 134 km2. Stemple Creek flows from east to tion efforts are underway by landowners on the west into the Estero de San Antonio and ultimately watershed. The Marin and Southern Sonoma County flows into Bodega Bay and the Pacific Ocean. Stem- Resource Conservation Districts and landowners have ple Creek Watershed is characterized by rolling coast- completed 13 km of riparian restoration projects in the al hills with slopes averaging about 30%. Elevations last 10 years along the waterways. The U.S. Depart- range from sea level at the mouth of the Estero de San ment of Agriculture (USDA), National Resource Antonio to 100 m at the eastern end of the watershed, Conservation Service (NRCS) approved 24 Environ- 200 m along the northern boundary, and 260 m along mental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) contracts the southern boundary. to improve conservation of the land within the water- Two geologic formations, the Franciscan and Wil- shed between 1997 and 2002. son Grove, underlie the watershed. The Franciscan This history of land use impacting erosion is super- formation of Mesozoic age is the older and consists of imposed on the geological controls of erosion and a mixture of rock masses in a sheared, shaley matrix sedimentation. The Stemple Creek Watershed is a and is fractured and faulted. These rocks are found truncated watershed. Travis (1952) reported that the mostly at lower elevations and in the western end of watershed of Stemple Creek formerly extended to Santa the watershed. The Wilson Grove formation is of Rosa Mountain. As a larger stream, Stemple Creek Pliocene age and is mostly marine sediments consist- was able to keep pace with tectonic uplift and incised a ing of sandstones, conglomerates, limestone concre- deep sinuous canyon in the coastal hills before dis- tions, and tuffs. These rocks make up the largest part charging to the Pacific Ocean. Later tectonic uplift of the watershed. They are found at higher elevations J.C. Ritchie et al. / Geomorphology 61 (2004) 347–360 349 and are generally in the eastern end of the watershed fescue [Festuca rubra L. subsp. rubra]. The major (NRCS, 2002). shrub species are coyote brush [Baccharis pilularis Upland hillsides bordering Stemple Creek to a DC.] with significant amounts of poison oak [Toxico- point roughly 2 km from the mouth of the Estero odendron diversilobum (Torr. & A. Gray) Greene], de San Antonio provide a combination of varied and lupine [Lupinus spp.], and blackberry [Rubus spp.]. relatively undisturbed landscape. The stream in this Native woodlands are confined to the upper water- area has fjord-like qualities of steep and twisting shed, especially the north-facing slopes, and along uplands as the dominating characteristic. The inter- streams as riparian zones. These vegetation types spersion of coastal prairie, coastal scrub, riparian formed a mosaic, which was very stable over time ravines and seeps, coastal strand, and grassland in until agriculture was introduced. Several native plant the area creates high habitat value for wildlife. In species that are uncommon or that reach the southern addition, restricted public access has left these areas most limit of their distribution in this area are locally relatively undisturbed, further enhancing their attrac- common in the coastal prairie. These include the tiveness to wildlife. Numerous freshwater seeps oc- native perennial grasses: California fescue [Festuca cur along the hillsides of Estero de San Antonio. californica Vasey], Pacific reed grass [Calamagrostis Along with the numerous riparian ravines, these nutkaensis (J. Presl & C. Presl) Steud.], tufted hair- moist areas increase vegetational diversity and bio- grass [Deschampsia cespitosa (L.) P. Beauv.], Oregon mass and provide valuable wildlife habitat in the dry gentian [Gentiana affinis Griseb. var. ovata A. Gray] upland areas. The watershed includes 1860 ha of and pickleweed [Salicornia europaea L.]. Swamp farmland located in the valley bottoms near the thistle [Cirsium douglasii DC. var. breweri (A. Gray) streams (NRCS, 2002). Keil & C. Turner], known from only one other spot in Mean annual precipitation ranges from 710 mm in Marin County, occurs in the seep areas along the the east to 915 mm in the west, with an average of 760 lower parts of the watershed (CAFG, 1977).
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