Techniques for studying the physical effects of commercial navigation traffic on aquatic habitats
Dates
Publication Date
1993-01
Summary
The primary objective of this report is to outline procedures that can be used for the measurement and analyses of physical data to measure changes that are generated with the movement of navigation traffic in large rivers. Part I of the report contains summaries of recent investigations of navigation studies and basic considerations in the extrapolation of the data for system-wide application. Part II provides a description of the various hydraulic, sediment transport, and vessel-induced parameters that need to be considered in navigation studies. Some theoretical backgrounds are given for velocity fluctuations, turbulence intensity, velocity distributions, and sediment transport characteristics of rivers. Part III considers the basic [...]
Summary
The primary objective of this report is to outline procedures
that can be used for the measurement and analyses of physical
data to measure changes that are generated with the movement of
navigation traffic in large rivers. Part I of the report
contains summaries of recent investigations of navigation studies
and basic considerations in the extrapolation of the data for
system-wide application. Part II provides a description of the
various hydraulic, sediment transport, and vessel-induced
parameters that need to be considered in navigation studies.
Some theoretical backgrounds are given for velocity fluctuations,
turbulence intensity, velocity distributions, and sediment
transport characteristics of rivers. Part III considers the
basic evaluation that must be done before collection of field
data. Part IV describes instruments that are necessary to
collect physical, hydraulic, and sediment transport data for a
river. Part V discusses development of plans for data collection
and analysis. Methods for studying pre- and post-navigation
periods are also presented. Data collection and analyses pertain
to physical impacts to the main channel and channel border, as
well as to side channels or inlets to backwater lakes. Part VI
outlines the procedure that can be followed for the analysis of
the data. This includes an evaluation of the field sites,
variability of flows, including velocities, movement and
deposition of sediments, effects of recreational boating, and
changes in bank erosion rates. This report can serve as a guide
for the development and implementation of field measuring
techniques for the determination of the physical changes
associated with the movement of navigation traffic in an inland
waterway.
.S. Army Engineer Waterways
Experiment Station, Vicksburg, Mississippi. Technical Report
EL-90-10. Reprinted by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
Environmental Management Technical Center, Onalaska, Wisconsin