Watershed Watch Community Science
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Watershed Watch Community Science
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Watershed Watch Methods
Introduction & What is a Watershed?1 Quiz -
How Do I Collect Watershed Health Data?How to Measure Stream Chemistry?4 Topics|1 Quiz
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What is an Benthic Macroinvertebrate, How to Sample, What do they tell us about Watershed Health?4 Topics|1 Quiz
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How do we Measure the Health of Riparian Areas7 Topics|1 Quiz
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How to Measure Streamflow?5 Topics|1 Quiz
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How to I Turn My Data Into Action?How to organize and interpret my data and develop findings?
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How to make a community presentation with my findings?
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How write a watershed management plan?
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We Calibrate Because We Care! ~ How to maintain and calibrate equipment
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How can I find work in the field of watershed science?
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How can I influence policymakers and turn my data into action?
How do we Measure the Health of Riparian Areas
July 23, 2020
Riparian “health” is defined here as a set of environmental conditions that result in the long-term sustainability of the riparian habitat. The quality of the riparian habitat refers to how well it supplies the physical, chemical and biological needs of the organisms living there. Riparian ecosystem structure and function respond to both abiotic and biotic forces, and this method focuses on 12 indicators of the health of these forces, ranging from vegetation cover to streambed geology. The method applies the 12 criteria to numerically evaluate riparian habitat using geomorphological and biological parameters. Each criterion is semi-quantitatively evaluated on a scale of 1 to 4, with 4 the healthiest and 1 the least healthy. This approach is based upon systematic sampling by the authors in numerous watersheds in New Mexico.
