This document is a cooperative effort among fifteen Federal agencies and partners to produce a common reference on stream corridor restoration. It responds to a growing national and international interest in restoring stream corridors.
The Clean Water Act (CWA) requires that wetlands be protected from degradation because of their important ecological functions including maintenance of high water quality and provision of fish and wildlife habitat. However, this protection generally does not encompass riparian areasâ€"the lands bordering rivers and lakesâ€"even though they often provide the same functions as wetlands. Growing recognition of the similarities in wetland and riparian area functioning and the differences in their legal protection led the NRC in 1999 to undertake a study of riparian areas, which has culminated in Riparian Areas: Functioning and Strategies for Management. The report is intended to heighten awareness of riparian areas commensurate with their ecological and societal values. The primary conclusion is that, because riparian areas perform a disproportionate number of biological and physical functions on a unit area basis, restoration of riparian functions along America's waterbodies should be a national goal.
Recommended action: Authorization to disburse up to $150,000 to San Diego EarthWorks to prepare a detailed assessment of the hydrologic, hydraulic, sediment transport and geomorphic conditions of the Rose Creek watershed and development of watershed restoration alternatives based on the opportunities identified in the Rose Creek Watershed Opportunities Assessment.
"The purpose of this watershed assessment is to: 1. Understand the current status of water quality and stream conditions for fish habitat ; 2. understand the processes that affect these conditions ; 3. discover restoration opportunities in regards to water quality and fish habitat."--Page 6.