Measurements of bed load transport on Pacific Creek, Buffalo Fork and The Snake River in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming

Abstract

Dams disrupt the flow of both of water and sediment through a watershed. Channel morphology is a function of discharge and sediment load, and perturbations caused by dams often alter channel form, causing significant geomorphic and, potentially, ecological changes (e.g. Petts and Gurnell, 2005). At the first order, dams often produce a flow regime that is profoundly altered in the timing, magnitude, and frequency of flows (Magilligan and Nislow, 2005). Yet, the nature of channel adjustments will be specific to both the physical setting, size of the river, dam characteristics, and nature and severity of the flow regulation (Church 1995; Knighton, 1998).