National Forests and Water Guidelines require the establishment of riparian buffers to help protect the freshwater environment from disturbance by silvicultural operations on the adjacent land. The main functions of the riparian buffer are considered to be sediment removal and erosion control, protection of water quality, moderation of shade and water temperature, maintenance of habitat structu...

Large quantities of water are consumed by irrigated crops and riparian vegetation in western U.S. irrigation districts. Remote sensing methods for estimating evaporative water losses by soil and vegetation (evapotranspiration, ET) over wide river stretches are needed to allocate water for agricultural and environmental needs. We used the Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) from MODIS sensors on the...

The physical structure of vegetation influences diversity, interactions, movement, and thermoregulation of animals. Vegetation structure might be a good indicator of habitat requirements of generalist predators, such as dragonflies and damselflies (order Odonata), and thereby affect species diversity. Odonates use aquatic and terrestrial habitats during larval and adult life stages, respectivel...

Whilst a growing body of evidence demonstrates people derive a range of health and wellbeing benefits from visiting parks, only a limited number of attempts have been made to provide a complementary economic assessment of parks. The aim of this exploratory study was to directly estimate the perceived health and wellbeing benefits attained from parks and the economic value assigned to parks by p...

As a feature of the built neighborhood environment, parks have been associated with a range of positive health outcomes. Recognition of these contributions has prompted advocates to suggest parks are a part of our healthcare system. Despite these developments, park investments have declined over the past decade nationally, lagging behind expenditures on other community services such as health. ...

We studied 15 riparian and upland Sonoran desert species to evaluate how the limitation of xylem pressure (Ψ(x)) by cavitation corresponded with plant distribution along a moisture gradient. Riparian species were obligate riparian trees (Fraxinus velutina, Populus fremontii, and Salix gooddingii), native shrubs (Baccharis spp.), and an exotic shrub (Tamarix ramosissima). Upland species were eve...

r a 200 .007 : +1 302 del.edu Summary The contributions of hillslope and riparian sources of runoff to streamflow were determined for four catchments (1.6–696 ha) in the Point Peter Brook watershed, a glaciated, forested, watershed in Western New York, USA. Investigations were performed for 10 storm events of varying size, intensity, and antecedent moisture conditions. Hydrometric, geochemical,...

Global circulation models forecasts indicate a future temperature and rainfall pattern modification worldwide. Such phenomena will become particularly evident in Europe where climate modifications could be more severe than the average change at the global level. As such, river flow regimes are expected to change, with resultant impacts on aquatic and riparian ecosystems. Riparian woodlands are ...