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<br /> <br /> <br />- <br /> <br />-=-:1 <br />~!!. <br /> <br />~. <br /> <br />COCONINO N~ fou.ot <br /> <br />Be3\'<:f Creek \Varershed <br /> <br />The Bellyer Cn'ek Watershed. ('on-ring- 27.1.000 <br />acres. is a pilot test project to determine the <br />effect which various land tratment practin.." <br />have on watN yield and otllPr :\:ltinnal Forest <br />re.<.:ources indllfling soil. tim~)f>r, range. wildlih'. <br />and recreation. This walf'rshed enl'()mpa.'i;<{>s <br />the Dry Beaver Cr('(>k and Wet Bt-',Wt'f Cre(>k <br />drainages and the thr('(' major vegetation zones <br />found in it are (1) grassland-desert shmh. (2) <br />pinyon-juniper. and (3) ponderosa pine. <br />All of the walt>rslwds in flU' Dry Bf'<l\"Pf Cn>(-,k <br />drainagt' and most of thf' ..;mall wall'rshNls on <br />\\'et Beayer ar(' ht>ing gaged for !'('H'ral years <br /> <br />\Varershed # 7 <br /> <br />Treatment of the ,"('gelation Oil Watershed =7 <br />was designed to place the timher in Ow hest <br />pos.<:.ible ('ondition for optimum wood produc- <br />tion. <br />A c:ommercial timber salp remo\"ed defpdin', <br />diseasp<1. mature, and ovprmaturp tre~ (rom <br />this 2.:~OO-:.u."n' pondero....a pine ....tancl. =,nund <br />and produc:ti\"e future S8.wtimlwr remained. <br />Pre-eommNl'ial timber (UndN 0" in diameter at <br />breast height) was thinned to n'mow small. <br />poorly fanned tn'es and eliminatf' c:ompetition. <br />About 600 sterns per ;lc:re were left. A pulp- <br />wood sale thinned tTf'eS ranging in size from 0" <br />to IS" in diameter. The objective was 10 lean> <br />approximately 80 square feet of tn."€' trunks <br />'hasal area) per acre - the dt'sirahle stcX'king <br />for maximum growth of ponderoAA pine on the <br />Colorado plateau. <br />Oak and locust trN':" were poisoned. hut \\ith <br />few exceptions the oak has continued to :,prout. <br /> <br />in an untreatl'd nmdition so a.:-; to determine <br />their streamflow characteristics. <br />In the pinyon-juniper type. the objective is to <br />nehien' complete conversion from low value <br />trpcs to gmss. Six untreated drainages in this <br />type are heing measured for water runoff prior <br />to eonvt'rsion. <br />Treatments in the ponderosa pine type will in- <br />c1udl' (I) complete clearing :.md conversion to <br />grass. (;!) various c1egrt'f's and kind", of thin- <br />ning of the ~('(..ond growth. anci {31 pre..;nilx"f! <br />hurning. The watersheds being calibratf'd for <br />strf'amflow will he user! in r!etermining the ef- <br />feds of these treatments on water yield. The <br />ohjectin> of the pn'sent treatment program <br />on several watersh('ds which havE' not lwen cal. <br />ihrated is to work out operational methods. <br />(>~tablish ha:-;ic costs. determine the effects on <br />other resourct-'s, and to haw' tlU' trPatpcl water~ <br />sheds serH' as dpmonstration areas. Following <br />('valuation of the t-'fff't,t", of various tr('atownts <br />on the smaller wak-rslwds. tht' most promising <br />practices will he tried out on largf'f waten;heds <br />which are now in calihration. This will as",ist <br />in the d('\'elopment of mdhoos that can he <br />utiliwd in carrying out future large scale ac- <br />tion programs. <br />Gages at the mouths of Dry Beaver Crf'ek and <br />\Vet Beaver Cfl-ek are measuring the wateT <br />flowing from the.s(' larg(' drainag(s. Thi.<: will <br />also providp data which will give some ml'aSur('- <br />mt-'nt of water runoff that is lost as n stream <br />flo\\"s from the high mountain I,'ountry down to <br />ttw main \,f'rde River Valley. <br /> <br />Pine Thinning <br /> <br />Plots have l)pen pstahlislwd within tht-' arf'a to <br />evalua!!;' the eff('{.t:-; this treatment ha:; upon <br />remaining trees. forage production. wildlife food. <br />and cover. <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />. Indian crt'\\" thinninl: l)()ndero"8 pint" ..tand. <br />