United States Departments of Agriculture and Interior Guidance for Stream Restoration Steven E. Yochum Lindsay V. Reynolds Forest Service Bureau of Land Management NSAEC TN-102.5 September 2020 Yochum, Steven E., Reynolds, Lindsay V. 2020. Guidance for Stream Restoration. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service; U.S. Department of Interior, Bureau of Land Management; Forest Service National Stream & Aquatic Ecology Center Technical Note TN-102.5. Fort Collins, Colorado. Cover Photos: Top-right: Illinois River, North Park, Colorado. Photo by Steven Yochum Bottom-left: Whychus Creek, Oregon. Photo by Paul Powers ABSTRACT Stream restoration practitioners and researchers have devoted a great deal of effort in recent decades to developing extensive guidance for stream restoration. The available resources are diverse, reflecting the wide ranging approaches used and expertise required to develop effective stream restoration projects. To help practitioners in sorting through the extensive amount of available information, this technical note has been developed to provide a guide to the available guidance. The document structure is primarily a series of short literature reviews followed by a hyperlinked reference list for readers to find more information on each topic. The primary topics incorporated into this guidance include general methods, an overview of stream processes and restoration, case studies, data compilation, preliminary assessments, and field data collection. Analysis methods and tools, and planning and design guidance for specific restoration features are also provided. This technical note is a bibliographic repository of information available to assist professionals with the process of planning, analyzing, and designing stream restoration projects. It is updated periodically. USFS; BLM TN-102.5 Fort Collins, Colorado Guidance for Stream Restoration i of vi September 2020 ADVISORY NOTE Techniques and approaches contained in this technical note are not all-inclusive, nor universally applicable. Designing stream In accordance with Federal civil rights law and restorations and rehabilitations requires U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil appropriate training and experience, especially to rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its identify conditions where various approaches, Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions tools, and techniques are most applicable, as well participating in or administering USDA programs as their limitations for design. Note also that are prohibited from discriminating based on race, product names are included only to show type and color, national origin, religion, sex, gender availability and do not constitute endorsement for identity (including gender expression), sexual their specific use. orientation, disability, age, marital status, family/parental status, income derived from a public assistance program, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity, in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA (not all bases apply to all programs). Remedies and complaint filing deadlines vary by program or incident. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.) should contact the responsible Agency or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877- 8339. 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USFS; BLM TN-102.5 Fort Collins, Colorado Guidance for Stream Restoration ii of vi September 2020 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS CONTENTS This technical note was authored by Steven Yochum, PhD, PE, Hydrologist, U.S. Forest ABSTRACT ......................................................... i Service, National Stream and Aquatic Ecology ADVISORY NOTE ............................................. ii Center, and Lindsay Reynolds, PhD, Riparian ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................... iii Ecologist, Bureau of Land Management, National Operations Center. It is updated periodically. The CONTENTS ....................................................... iii groundwater section was contributed to by Joe FIGURES ............................................................ v Gurrieri, hydrogeologist with the Forest Service TABLES ............................................................. vi Minerals & Geology Management – Groundwater 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................... 1 Program. Administrative review of this latest 2. GOALS AND OBJECTIVES ......................... 2 version was completed by David Levinson, 3. GENERAL METHODS .................................. 3 Program Manager, U.S. Forest Service, National Stream and Aquatic Ecology Center. 3.1 Interdisciplinary Team .............................. 3 3.2 Planning Process ....................................... 3 Peer review of version TN-102.1 of this guidance (which was authored by Steven Yochum) was 3.3 Watershed Approach ................................. 4 performed by Johan Hogervorst, USFS 4. RIPARIAN MANAGEMENT ........................ 5 Hydrologist; Robert Tanner, USFS Hydrologist; 5. ADAPTIVE MANAGEMENT ....................... 6 Paul Powers, USFS Aquatic Biologist; Brady Dodd, USFS Hydrologist; and Robert Gubernick, 6. OVERVIEW of STREAM PROCESSES and USFS Geologist. RESTORATION ................................................. 7 7. CASE STUDIES ............................................. 9 The original document was published by the 8. DATA COMPILATION ............................... 11 USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Colorado State Office, with the initial version 8.1 Data Sources ............................................ 11 (Colorado Engineering Tech Note 27.1) released 8.1.1 Water Quantity ................................. 11 in June 2012. Peer review of the original NRCS 8.1.2 Water Quality and Sediment ............ 11 document was performed by Rob Sampson, NRCS 8.1.3 GIS Data and Mapping ..................... 11 State Conservation Engineer; Barry Southerland, 8.1.4 Climate Data ..................................... 12 NRCS Fluvial Geomorphologist; Brian Bledsoe, CSU Associate Professor of Civil and 8.1.5 Vegetative Information .................... 12 Environmental Engineering; Terri Sage, NRCS 8.1.6 Literature .......................................... 12 Biologist; and Christine Taliga, NRCS Plant 8.2 Geographic Information System ............. 13 Materials Specialist. 8.3 Historical Information ............................. 13 Other individuals have provided comments and 9. PRELIMINARY FIELD ASSESSMENT ..... 14 clarifications to the document; all of their 9.1 Fundamental Principles ........................... 16 contributions are highly appreciated. Please email Steven Yochum with any additional comments or 9.1.1 Total and Unit Stream Power ........... 16 suggestions, for inclusion in the next update. 9.1.2 Shear Stress ...................................... 17 9.1.3 Momentum ....................................... 17 9.1.4 Roughness and Flow Resistance ...... 17 9.1.5 Lane’s Balance ................................. 18 9.2 Stream Channel States and Evolution Models ........................................................... 18 9.3 Stream Classification ............................... 22 9.4 Stream Evolution Triangle ................ 23 9.5 Stream Ecological Valuation (SEV) ........ 24 USFS; BLM TN-102.5 Fort Collins, Colorado Guidance for Stream Restoration iii of vi September 2020 9.6 Basic Assessment Tools .......................... 24 11.11.5 Floodplains ................................... 57 10. MONITORING AND DATA COLLECTION 11.12 Groundwater ........................................ 58 FOR RESTORATION ...................................... 25 12. RESTORATION FEATURES .................... 60 10.1 Aquatic Organisms ................................ 26 12.1 Vegetation ............................................. 60 10.2 Riparian Vegetation .............................. 27 12.2 Livestock Grazing Management ........... 63 10.3 Topographic Survey Data ..................... 28 12.3 Large Wood ........................................... 66 10.4 Bankfull Stage Identification ................ 30 12.3.1 Management for Large Wood 10.5 Discharge Measurements ...................... 31 Recruitment and Retention ........................ 67 12.3.2 Large Wood Structures ................... 68 10.6 Water Quality ........................................ 32 12.4 Stream Habitat and Environmental Flows 10.7 Bed Material Sampling ......................... 33 ....................................................................... 70 10.8 Sediment Transport Measurements ....... 34 12.5 Longitudinal Connectivity ..................... 74 10.9 Groundwater Monitoring ...................... 35 12.6 Fish Screening ......................................