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Pacific Southwest Research Station |
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Pacific Southwest
Research Station 800 Buchanan Street Albany, CA 94710-0011 (510) 883-8830 ![]() |
Research Topics Water and WatershedsKings River Experimental Watersheds:
Participating Programs
Contributing Scientists and Staff
Featured
Highlighted Research
Kings River Experimental Watersheds (KREW)KREW Location: Teakettle Experimental ForestBeginning in 1936, three potential experimental watersheds were the subjects of intensive geology and soil studies: Onion Creek (Tahoe National Forest), and Big Creek and Teakettle Creek (Sierra National Forest). In 1938 a 1,300 ha area surrounding Teakettle Creek was designated the Teakettle Experimental Area and five drainages were chosen for study. Historic Research
The objective of the experimental forest was to develop timber harvest patterns that would increase water yield. However, studies completed in the 1950s and 1960s at Yuba Pass and Sagehen Creek suggested moderate forest cover removal had little effect on water yield in the Sierra Nevada. In the 1960s the focus of Teakettle research switched to water flow measurements in relation to weather patterns. This study was continued into the 1980s until the Forest Service stopped the study because of budget constraints and the logistics of maintaining a remote site. The stream discharge records are on the U.S. Geologic Survey web site for the years that USGS ran the site. The more recent data records (paper and digital) exist for the years that the Forest Service ran the site but are not quality-assured for distribution. Current Research
Four of the original stream gauging sites remain and were not impacted by the Teakettle Ecosystem Experiment. Since the Teakettle Experimental Forest was started as a hydrologic study, it provides a unique long-term record regarding stream discharge and sediment loads from a headwater, mixed-conifer forest with little disturbance. While this area has had cattle grazing and fire suppression, it has few roads and no history of timber harvesting. All four of the stream gauging sites were evaluated and three were determined to be in good structural condition. The Kings River Experimental Watershed (Hunsaker and Eagan 2003) selected one of these watersheds (TK3) as a control for the Bull Site and renovated the facility in 2003. This watershed began data collection in October 2003 as part of KREW. |
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