Physical habitat in conterminous US streams and Rivers, part 2: A quantitative assessment of habitat condition.

ABSTRACT: Rigorous assessments of the ecological condition of water resources and the effect of human activities on those waters require quantitative physical, chemical, and biological data. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's river and stream surveys quantify river and stream bed particle size and stability, instream habitat complexity and cover, riparian vegetation cover and structure, and anthropogenic disturbance activities. Physical habitat is strongly controlled by natural geoclimatic factors that co-vary with human activities. We expressed the anthropogenic alteration of physical habitat as O/E ratios of observed habitat metric values divided by values expected under least-disturbed reference conditions, where site-specific expected values vary given their geoclimatic and geomorphic co

SUBMITTER: Kaufmann PR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9389467 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature