The Functioning Winter Steelhead Habitat
analysis ranks 6th fields on the basis of the following
factors (as requested by the MidCoast Watersheds Council):
length of
potential habitat
(medium-
gradient,
confined
streams as defined in the DEM analysis); total length
per 6th field of riffle habitat (AHI), and length of riffles
with substrate dominated by gravel-to-boulder-sized particles
(AHI).
To develop the 6th field rankings, we summed the length
of "confined", medium-gradient reaches for each 6th field,
then ranked the 6th fields for that total length. We also
summed and ranked length of riffles and riffles with gravel-to-boulder-sized
substrate dominant. We normalized all rankings to a scale
of 100, then averaged all three rankings to form a final
Functioning Winter Steelhead Habitat ranking for each
6th field. All factors were weighted equally. A high value
for each factor increased the ranking. The highest possible
ranking is 1 (best-functioning habitat by these criteria);
the lowest possible ranking is 100 (lowest-functioning
habitat by these criteria).
Rankings can help prioritize 6th fields
for actions designed to improve winter steelhead habitat.
The rankings should not be used alone for this purpose,
but should be used in conjunction with other data, particularly
field verification of suitable conditions. Before using
the rankings, we recommend careful review of the detailed
methods for each individual analysis that entered into the
multi-factor analysis.
Please address questions or comments
to:
Dr. Ralph Garono
Principal Investigator
Earth Design Consultants, Inc.
rgarono@earthdesign.com
Laura Brophy
Principal Investigator
Green Point Consulting
brophyl@peak.org |
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