Technical Report

Evaluation of Bar Morphology, Distribution and Dynamics as Indices of Fluvial Processes in the Middle Rio Grande, New Mexico

URL: https://webapps.usgs.gov/mrgescp/documents/Mussetter_2006_Evaluation-of-Bar-Morphology-Distribution-and-Dynamics-as-Indices-of-Fluvial-Processes-in-the-MRG.pdf

Date: 2006/03/14

Author(s): Mussetter Engineering, Inc.

Publication: Report prepared for the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission, 35 p.

Abstract:

Previous studies have demonstrated that changes in the types and numbers of bars in an alluvial river can be related to changes in fluvial processes (Brice, 1964; Maizels, 1979; Germanoski, 1989; Germanoski and Schumm, 1993; Germanoski and Harvey, 1993). This investigation of the morphology and dynamics of bars in the Middle Rio Grande was designed to evaluate these relationships within the reach of the Rio Grande between Cochiti Dam and San Marcial in central New Mexico, and to develop a bar classification system for this reach of river that could provide a first-cut understanding of the fluvial processes operating at sites within this reach proposed for habitat restoration or other modifications. The study addressed bar changes through time and space in response to man-induced and climatic changes in the watershed hydrology, sediment supply to the river, and channel morphology. This project was conducted under Fiscal Year (FY) 2003 and 2004 funding from the Middle Rio Grande Endangered Species Act Collaborative Program and the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission (NMISC).