Pacific Southwest Research Station

Stream Restoration

Stream restoration projects are being planned and implemented to restore geomorphic and ecological functions including retention of fine sediments and providing habitat for plants and animals. These restoration efforts are underway in the watersheds of the Upper Truckee River, Blackwood Creek, Ward Creek, Trout Creek, and other streams around the basin. Research projects are synthesizing the results from past stream restoration projects as well as conducting in-depth field, modeling and laboratory studies to improve understanding of how stream channels erode and sediments deposit in floodplains. The findings will help design projects that more effectively reduce pollution and enhance habitat.

Research Projects

• A collaborative definition, classification refinement, and mapping of the stream environment zones in the Lake Tahoe Basin
• Application of the stream load reduction tool (SLRT) to quantify the project and reach scale water quality benefits of Upper Truckee River restoration efforts
• Laboratory experiments on fine particle capture by submerged vegetation in stream environment zones (SEZs): the effects of vegetation density, biofilm development and particle composition
• Quantification and characterization of Trout Creek restoration effectiveness
• Measuring the ability of floodplains to treat urban runoff in the Lake Tahoe basin
• A comprehensive integration of past stream restoration efforts and future tools to evaluate and track the multitude of benefits by stream and meadows in the Lake Tahoe basin
• Potential of engineered flood plains and wetlands as fine-particle BMPs: case study of Trout Creek and the Upper Truckee River
• Tahoe basin particle size analysis and protocol development
• Methodology to predict total and fine sediment load reductions as a result of channel restoration in Lake Tahoe streams
• Application of enhanced stream-corridor modeling tools for adaptive management of Tahoe basin streams