9658

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 9658
• Author: Schmidt, J. C. and K. L. Orchard.
• Title: Report A - Geomorphic Analysis In Support of a Channel-Maintenance Flow Recommendation for the White River Near Watson, Utah Draft Report.
• USFW Year: 2002.
• USFW - Doc Type: Logan, UT.
• Copyright Material: NO

identified.

Our objective in this paper is to augment previous studies of the White River by

addressing the question of what discharges are necessary to maintain channel form and

habitat diversity. Specifically, we" wanted to~etermine what discharges are necessary

to mobilize the bed and}herebY1emove fme-grained sediments from gravel deposits and

maintain gravelloosene5s, and 2) identify what discharges transport the majority of the

sediment load'd are responsible for maintaining channel form.

Overview of the White River and Description of the Study Site

The White River basin is in northwest Colorado and northeast Utah (Fig. 1). The

basin is south from the Yampa River basin, and north from the Colorado River. The

White River originates in the Flat Top mountains of western Colorado at an elevation of

I

approximately ~600 m. From its sources, the river flows westward for approximately
rm
4.QQ...lm1, and has incised shallow canyons through predominantly Tertiary sediments of

the Unita and Green River formations. The river joins the Green River in the central

f"'l/eil'Y\"\\tS
Uinta Basin several kilemeters. downstream from the confluence ofthe Green and

Duchesne Rivers. The channel has migrated across its valley, and oxbow lakes and the

concentric patterns characteristic of migrating channels are present in many reaches (Fig.

2).

The principal water use in the White River basin is irrigation. Non-agricultural

diversions are made by the towns ofRangely and Meeker. Combined agricultural and

non-agricultural water depletions in the White River basin are approximately 3.75 x 108

~304,000 acre-fee1 annually. Average annual streamflow in the White River at the

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