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beak <br />• 3.0 STREAM PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT <br />The objective of this task was to obtain information on the physical <br />aquatic environment in the permit area, the purpose being to determine the <br />quality of available habitat and the capacity of key stream areas to adjust <br />and recover from potential changes due to flow variations, channel intrusion, <br />and/or increases in sedimentation. <br />3.1 Methods <br />Stream sampling locations C, D, X, E, and F (Figure 2.0-1) were surveyed <br />in conjunction with other aquatic study tasks based on methods described by <br />Duff and Cooper (1978) and USDA (1975). Both references contain criteria <br />which were used to assign values for the following categories: cover, <br />conditions, and types of streambank and riparia; locations and features of <br />• pool and riffle areas; stream channel substrate materials: and channel <br />elevations and gradients. <br />By these systems, each category was divided into several parameters <br />which comprise a range of observed physical features and assigned a cor- <br />responding number value. After visually analyzing the stream habitat and <br />channel stability parameters for a given reach, field biologists entered <br />derived values onto standard data forms (figure 3.0-1 ). Concurrently, <br />representative features and observed disturbances were photodocumented. <br />Specific areas and lengths of stream examined within each survey <br />location were established in the field on the basis of describing a representa- <br />tive variety of stream characteristics. In addition, stream channels within <br />the study area but outside of defined survey reaches were examined and <br />3-I <br />