North Coast Watershed Assessment Program

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North Coast Watershed Assessment Program GIS Data
and Synthesis
Chris Keithley Fire and Resource Assessment
Program California Department of
Forestry Chris_Keithley_at_fire.ca.gov

May 1, 2002 For more information on
NCWAP http//www.ncwatershed.ca.gov
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North Coast Watershed Assessment
Program Goals 1) Develop baseline information
about watershed conditions to evaluate
effectiveness of programs 2) Guide watershed
restoration programs to ensure efficient and
effective projects 3) To guide cooperative
approaches to protect and improve watershed
conditions through stewardship, easements, and
other incentive programs 4) To implement laws
requiring assessments, e.g. Forest Practices Act,
Clean Water and Porter-Cologne Water Quality
Acts, and Lake and Streambed Alteration Permits
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What will our assessment program do?

• NCWAP will describe current watershed conditions,
  processes, and uses.
• NCWAP will develop hypotheses about linkages
  among land use activities, natural events,
  watershed processes and stream habitat conditions
  for salmon.
• NCWAP will identify restoration priorities,
  develop general management recommendations, and
  provide context and guidance for cumulative
  effects analyses.
• NCWAP will not provide specific management
  prescriptions.

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Issues Scoping, Sharing Data, Reviewing
Products Landowners, Watershed Groups, Local
Agencies
Landslide and Hazard Maps, Fluvial Geomorphology,
and Sediment Storage Maps Department of
Conservation/ Division of Mines and Geology
Analyses of Factors Limiting Fish Populations By
Watersheds Department of Fish and Game
Watershed Assessment Products
Land Use History, Cumulative Effects Frameworks,
Management Recommendations Department of
Forestry and Fire Protection
Basin Water Quality Assessment North Coast
Regional Water Quality Control Board
Streamflow Effects and Trends Department of
Water Resources
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NCWAP Watershed Assessments
Current Assessments Redwood, Gualala, Mattole,
Big River and Albion Future Assessments
(Preliminary) Shasta, Scott, Middle Klamath and
M.F. Eel
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GIS data to support watershed assessments
Land Cover Mapping Vegetation Condition, Change
Detection Land Use Timber Harvesting Roads Str
eams Elevation Data Geology Landslides Channel
Characteristics -Channel typing, Channel
Condition In-Stream Habitat Conditions Stream
Temperature
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Stream Flow Gages
New gages 8 total, 3 on Gualala River 2 on Big
River, 2 on Albion River, and 1 on Mattole
River These gauges were also equipped with water
temperature sensors. For more information
contact Dept. of Water Resources John Clements,
Clements_at_water.ca.gov
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• Assessment Methods
• EMDS and its Use by NCWAP
•  
• Decision support tools. EMDS provides a method
  for evaluating the
• relationships between environmental factors that
  are represented as
• GIS layers for each watershed.
• The stream reach component of EMDS evaluates
  current in-stream conditions and supports an
  assessment of limiting factors for salmonids.
• The watershed EMDS model is applied at the
  planning watershed level and the sub-basin level.

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Purpose of the EMDS Model(s)

• Evaluate how watershed conditions compare with
  desired conditions for salmonids.
• Link up with the Stream Reach Condition Model
  being developed by DFG that evaluates in-stream
  conditions.
• Integrate multiple types of data.
• Communicate tool.

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Model Structure How does it work?
  The model consists of a series of networks that
evaluate different environmental parameters.
The model starts with a basic proposition
e.g., watershed or stream reach conditions are
suitable for sustaining salmonid populations
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Stream Condition
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Example of EMDS output for Redwood Creek DRAFT!!
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NCWAP GIS data distribution
NCWAP Web site http//www.ncwatershed.ca.gov KR
IS Watershed CDs http//www.krisweb.com/ Partici
pating State Agency Web Sites access via the
NCWAP web site Fire and Resource Assessment Web
Site http//frap.cdf.ca.gov/