Flood Disturbance in a Forested Mountain Landscape

• DOI: 10.2307/1313331
• Publication Date: 2006-04-25T19:02:46Z
• Authors: Frederick J. Swanson; Sherri L. Johnson; Stanley V. Gregory; Steven A. Acker
• Keywords: Snowmelt

R ecent flooding in the Pacific Northwest vividly illustrates complexity of watershed and ecosystem responses to floods, especially steep forest landscapes. Flooding involves a sequence interactions that begins with climatic drivers. These drivers, generally rain snowmelt, interact landscape conditions, such as vegetation pattern topography, determine capability deliver water, sediment, organic material downstream areas (Figure 1). Land-use practices can affect through influences managed patterns roads on delivery wood streams. Watershed floods include geophysical processes, landslides channel erosion, related disturbances aquatic riparian organisms their habitats. We explore these geophysical-ecological using recent flood