Slide 2 of 75
Notes:
This presentation examines some of the effects of land development on aquatic ecosystems with an emphasis on the direct relationship of impervious cover on stream health, in particular, stream hydrology, geomorphology, water quality, and habitat. The impacts discussed in this slideshow generally apply to headwater streams, which are composed of first and second order streams. Since these small headwater streams comprise about 75% of all the river and stream mileage in the contiguous U.S., their proper management and protection is essential to the protection of our larger lakes, rivers, and estuaries.
Extremely important in watershed management because they are exceptionally vulnerable to watershed changes, headwater streams are also good indicators of watershed quality; they act as the "narrowest door" for water resource protection and are strongly supported and intuitively understood by the public. Furthermore, what happens in the local landscape is directly translated to headwater streams and major receiving waters are affected in turn.
