In-Person at the CASFM Conference Steamboat, Colorado
Fluvial Geomorphic Processes, Hazards, and Opportunities in Stream Corridors
Streams are not lines, they are corridors! Stream corridors are naturally dynamic environments that bring together physical, biological, and chemical processes all while supporting a host of societal and ecological benefits. When streams and floodplains are treated as static lines on the landscape, stream health declines and risk to human-made infrastructure increases. Providing streams the space they need to accommodate and facilitate natural processes and functions is becoming a central tenet in land, water, and floodplain management practices. But how do we define the stream corridor and effectively communicate the importance of protecting and restoring the processes that define them? What tools are commonly used to protect and restore stream corridors and how well do they really accomplish this? How do we strategically focus watershed and community-level planning to protect stream corridor functions given limited funding and time?
What Will You Learn?
Participants will be introduced to stream corridor processes (physical and biological) and the various ways of defining them. You will explore more and less compatible management practices and opportunities within stream corridors. Participants will identify and understand the fundamental processes and components of Fluvial Hazard Zone maps and how the FHZ Mapping Program can be applied to manage the stream corridors under their purview.
Who Should Attend?
Anyone interested in stream corridors and functional floodplains—ecological, regulatory, and geomorphic. No prerequisites necessary! This includes (but is not limited to) municipal planners and staff or managers in public works, floodplains and stormwater departments; consultants; and state or federal agency staff with purview over stream corridor regulation, projects, permitting, or other forms of stream management.