Research Teams

John Buffington, Research Geomorphologist
e-mail: jbuffington[at]fs.fed.us
phone: 208.373.4384

Education:

B.A., Geology & Geophysics, University of California, Berkeley, 1988
M.S., Geomorphology, University of Washington, 1995
Ph.D., Geomorphology, University of Washington, 1998

Research Interests:

Fluvial geomorphology, watershed processes, and interactions between physical and biological systems in mountain basins.  Effects of wood debris on channel morphology, hydraulics, and sediment transport.  Basin-scale predictions of salmonid spawning habitat distributions. Topographically-forced hyporheic flow. Channel and aquatic habitat response to wildfire. Mechanics of sediment motion and bedload transport.  Sediment sampling.

Publications:

2013

Buffington, J.M., and D.R. Montgomery. 2013. Geomorphic classification of rivers. In: Shroder, J. (Editor in Chief), Wohl, E. (Ed.), Treatise on Geomorphology. Academic Press, San Diego, CA, vol. 9, Fluvial Geomorphology, pp. 730–767.

Goode, J. R., J. M. Buffington, D. Tonina, D. J. Isaak, R. F. Thurow, S. Wenger, D. Nagel, C. Luce, D. Tetzlaff, and C. Soulsby. 2013. Potential effects of climate change on streambed scour and risks to salmonid survival in snow-dominated mountain basins. Hydrologic Processes. 27(5): 750-765.

2012

Caamaño, D., P. Goodwin, and J.M. Buffington. 2012. Flow structure through pool-riffle sequences and a conceptual model for their sustainability in gravel-bed rivers. River Research and Applications 28(3): 377-389.

Goode, J. R., C. H. Luce, and J. M. Buffington. 2012. Enhanced sediment delivery in a changing climate in semi-arid mountain basins: Implications for water resource management and aquatic habitat in the northern Rocky Mountains. Geomorphology 139-140: 1-15.

Buffington, J.M., 2012. Changes in channel morphology over human time scales. In: Church, M., Biron, P.M., Roy, A.G. (Eds.), Gravel-Bed Rivers: Processes, Tools, Environments. Wiley, Chichester, UK, pp. 435-463. 

2011

Rosenberger, A. E., J. B. Dunham, J. M. Buffington, and M. S. Wipfli. 2011. Persistent effects of wildfire and debris flows on the invertebrate prey base of rainbow trout in Idaho streams. Northwest Science 85(1):55-63.

Tonina, D., and J. M. Buffington. 2011. Effects of stream discharge, alluvial depth and bar amplitude on hyporheic flow in pool-riffle channels. Water Resources Research. 47:W08508. doi:10.1029/2010WR009140.

2010

Beechie, T.J., D.A. Sear, J.D. Olden, G.R. Pess, J.M. Buffington, H.J. Moir, P. Roni, and M.M. Pollock. 2010. Process-based principles for restoring river ecosystems. BioScience 60(3): 209-222.

Roper, B.B., Buffington, J.M., Bennett, S., Lanigan, S.H., Archer, E., Downie, S., Faustini, J., Hillman, T.W., Hubler, S., Jones, K., Jordan, C., Kaufmann, P.R., Merritt, G., Moyer, C., and Pleus, A. 2010. A comparison of the performance and compatibility of protocols used by seven monitoring groups to measure stream habitat in the Pacific Northwest. North American Journal of Fisheries Management 30: 565-587.

2009

Buffington, J.M., and D. Tonina, 2009. Hyporheic exchange in mountain rivers II: Effects of channel morphology on mechanics, scales and rates of exchange, Geography Compass 3(3): 1038-1062, doi 10.1111/j.1749-8198.2009.00225.x. 

Burke, M., Jorde, K., and Buffington, J.M. 2009. Application of a hierarchical framework for assessing environmental impacts of dam operation: changes in hydrology, channel hydraulics, bed mobility and recruitment of riparian trees in a western North American river. Journal of Environmental Management 90: S224-S236, doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2008.07.022.

Caamaño, D., P. Goodwin, J.M. Buffington, J.C.P. Liou, and S. Daley-Laursen, 2009, A unifying criterion for the velocity reversal hypothesis in gravel-bed rivers, Journal of Hydraulic Engineering 135(1): 66-70, doi: 10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9429(2009)135:1(66).

Faux, Russell N.; Buffington, John M.; Whitley, M. German; Lanigan, Steve H.; Roper, Brett B. 2009. Chapter 6.- Use of airborne near-infrared LiDAR for determining channel cross-section characteristics and monitoring aquatic habitat in Pacific Northwest rivers: A preliminary analysis In: Bayer, J.M.; Schei, J.L., eds. PNAMP special publication: Remote sensing applications for aquatic resource monitoring. Cook, WA: Pacific Northwest Aquatic Monitoring partnership. p. 43-60.

Moir, H.J., Gibbins, C.N., Buffington, J.M., Webb, J.H., Soulsby, C., and Brewer, M.J. 2009. A new method to identify the fluvial regimes used by spawning salmonids. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 66(9): 1404-1408. 

Tonina, D. and J.M. Buffington, 2009. Hyporheic exchange in mountain rivers I: Mechanics and environmental effects, Geography Compass 3(3): 1063-1086, doi 10.1111/j.1749-8198.2009.00226.x. 

Tonina, D., and J. M. Buffington. 2009. A three-dimensional model for analyzing the effects of salmon redds on hyporheic exchange and egg-pocket habitat. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 66(12):2157-2173.

2008

Barry, J.J., Buffington, J.M., Goodwin, P., King, J.G., and W.W. Emmett, 2008, Performance of bed-load transport equations relative to geomorphic significance: predicting effective discharge and its transport rate, Journal of Hydraulic Engineering 134(5): 601-615, doi 10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9429(2008)134:5(601).

Buffington, J.M., and D. Tonina, 2008, Discussion of "Evaluating vertical velocities between the stream and the hyporheic zone from temperature data" by I. Seydell, B.E. Wawra, and U.C.E. Zanke, in Gravel-Bed Rivers 6–From Process Understanding to River Restoration, edited by H. Habersack, H. Piégay, and M. Rinaldi, Elsevier, pp. 128-131.

Roper, B.B., J.M. Buffington, E. Archer, C. Moyer, and M. Ward, 2008, The role of observer variation in determining Rosgen stream types in northeastern Oregon mountain streams, Journal of the American Water Resources Association 44(2): 417-427, doi:10.1111/j.1752-1688.2008.00171.x.

Buffington, John M.; Roper, Brett B.; Archer, Eric; Moyer, Chris, 2009. REPLY TO DISCUSSION - The Role of Observer Variation in Determining Rosgen Stream Types in Northeastern Oregon Mountain Streams. Journal of the American Water Resources Association. 45 (5), 1298-1312.

Tonina, D., C.H. Luce, B. Rieman, J.M. Buffington, P. Goodwin, S.R. Clayton, S.M. Ali, J.J. Barry, and C. Berenbrock, 2008, Hydrological response to timber harvest in northern Idaho: implications for channel scour and persistence of salmonids, Hydrological Processes, 22: 3223–3235. doi: 10.1002/hyp.6918.

2007

Tonina, D., and J.M. Buffington, 2007, Hyporheic exchange in gravel bed rivers with pool-riffle morphology: Laboratory experiments and three-dimensional modeling, Water Resources Research, 43: W01421, doi:10.1029/2005WR004328.

2006

Bisson, P.A., D.R. Montgomery, and J.M. Buffington, 2006, Valley segments, stream reaches, and channel units, in Methods in Stream Ecology, edited by F.R. Hauer and G.A. Lamberti, Academic Press/Elsevier, San Diego, CA, pp. 23-49.    Book

Burke, M., K. Jorde, J.M. Buffington, J. Braatne, and R. Benjakar, 2006, Spatial distribution of impacts to channel bed mobility due to flow regulation, Kootenai River, USA, Proceedings of the 8th Federal Interagency Sedimentation Conference, Reno, NV, April 2-6, 2006.

2004

Barry, J.J., J.M. Buffington, and J.G. King, 2004, A general power equation for predicting bed load transport rates in gravel bed rivers, Water Resources Research, 40: W10401, doi:10.1029/2004WR003190.

• Barry, J.J., J.M. Buffington, and J.G. King, 2005,Reply to comment by Claude Michel on "A general power equation for predicting bed load transport rates in gravel bed rivers", Water Resources Research, 41:W07016, doi:10.1029/2005WR004172.

• Barry, J.J., J.M. Buffington, and J.G. King, 2007,Correction to "A general power equation for predicting bed load transport rates in gravel bed rivers", Water Resources Research, 43:W08702, doi:10.1029/2007WR006103.

Buffington, J.M.,D.R. Montgomery, and H.M. Greenberg, 2004,Basin-scale availability of salmonid spawning gravel as influenced by channel type and hydraulic roughness in mountain catchments, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 61:2085-2096.  Erratum

2003

Buffington, J.M., R.D. Woodsmith, D.B. Booth, and D.R. Montgomery, 2003,Fluvial processes in Puget Sound Rivers and the Pacific Northwest, in Restoration of Puget Sound Rivers,

Montgomery, D.R., B.D. Collins, J.M. Buffington, and T.B. Abbe, 2003, Geomorphic effects of wood in rivers, in The Ecology and Management of Wood in World Rivers, edited by S. Gregory, K. Boyer, and A.M. Gurnell, American Fisheries Society Symposium 37:21-47.

2002

Buffington, J.M., T.E. Lisle, R.D. Woodsmith, and S. Hilton, 2002, Controls on the size and occurrence of pools in coarse-grained forest rivers, River Research and Applications, 18:507-531.

1999-2001

Buffington, J.M., 1999, The legend of A.F. Shields, Journal of Hydraulic Engineering, 125:376-387.

• Buffington, J.M., 2000,The legend of A.F. Shields (Closure), Journal of Hydraulic Engineering, 126:721-723.

Buffington, J.M., and D.R. Montgomery, 1999a,A procedure for classifying textural facies in gravel-bed rivers, Water Resources Research, 35:1903-1914.

Buffington, J.M., and D.R. Montgomery, 1999b, Effects of hydraulic roughness on surface textures of gravel-bed rivers, Water Resources Research, 35:3507-3522.

• Buffington, J.M., and D.R. Montgomery, 2001,Reply to comments on "Effects of hydraulic roughness on surface textures of gravel-bed rivers" and "Effects of sediment supply on surface textures of gravel-bed rivers" by John M. Buffington and David R. Montgomery, Water Resources Research, 37:1529-1533.

Buffington, J.M., and D.R. Montgomery, 1999c, Effects of sediment supply on surface textures of gravel-bed rivers, Water Resources Research, 35:3523-3530.

1998

Montgomery, D.R., and J.M. Buffington, 1998, Channel processes, classification, and response, in River Ecology and Management, edited by R. Naiman and R. Bilby, Springer-Verlag, New York, NY, pp. 13-42.

Aalto, R., D.R. Montgomery, B. Hallet, T.B. Abbe, J.M. Buffington, K.M. Cuffey, and K.M. Schmidt, 1997, A hill of beans, Science, 277:1911-1913.

1997

Buffington, J.M., and D.R. Montgomery, 1997,A systematic analysis of eight decades of incipient motion studies, with special reference to gravel-bedded rivers, Water Resources Research, 33:1993-2029.  Erratum

Montgomery, D.R., and J.M. Buffington, 1997, Channel-reach morphology in mountain drainage basins, Geological Society of America Bulletin, 109:596-611.

1996

Montgomery, D.R., T.B. Abbe, J.M. Buffington, N.P. Peterson, K.M. Schmidt, and J.D. Stock, 1996a, Distribution of bedrock and alluvial channels in forested mountain drainage basins, Nature, 381:587-589.

Montgomery, D.R., J.M. Buffington, N.P. Peterson, D. Schuett-Hames, and T.P. Quinn, 1996b, Streambed scour, egg burial depths and the influence of salmonid spawning on bed surface mobility and embryo survival, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 53:1061-1070.

Woodsmith, R.D., and J.M. Buffington, 1996, Multivariate geomorphic analysis of forest streams: Implications for assessment of land use impact on channel condition, Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 21:377-393.

1995

Montgomery, D.R., J.M. Buffington, R.D. Smith, K.M. Schmidt, and G. Pess, 1995, Pool spacing in forest channels, Water Resources Research, 31:1097-1105.

1992

Buffington, J.M., W.E. Dietrich, and J.W. Kirchner, 1992, Friction angle measurements on a naturally formed gravel streambed: Implications for critical boundary shear stress, Water Resources Research, 28:411-425.

Student Theses/Dissertations:

Welcker, C., 2011. Bulking debris flow initiation and impacts. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Idaho, Boise, ID, 179 pp.

Barry, J.J., 2007,Bed load transport in gravel-bed rivers, unpub. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Idaho, Boise, ID, 164 pp.

Scheidt, N.E., 2006,Stream succession: channel changes after wildfire disturbance unpubl. M.S. thesis, University of Idaho, Boise, ID, 60 pp.

Tonina, D., 2005,Interaction between river morphology and intergravel flow paths within the hyporheic zone, unpub. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Idaho, Boise, ID, 114 pp.