Rapid Stream Incision in Response to Post-Fire Floods: Implications for Channel Evolution and Terrace Development
Reneau SL, Cannon SH, Veenhuis JE. 1999. Rapid Stream Incision in Response to Post-Fire Floods: Implications for Channel Evolution and Terrace Development. LA-UR-99-1728. Los Alamos National Laboratory
Floods following the 1996 Dome Fire in Capulin Canyon, New Mexico, excavated large volumes of course sediment and locally exposed erodible bedrock beneath the stream bed, triggering rapid incision. Up to 2 m of incision into bedrock occurred in 1996, equivalent to thousands of years of "average incision." At the site of maximum incision the channel elevation apparently stabilized within one year, and subsequent channel evolution has been dominated by lateral erosion. The post-fire response of Capulin Canyon provides a modern analog for terrace development in this region, with strath terraces resulting from alternating episodes of incision and lateral erosion, and with the incision being triggered by removal of gravel armors on the stream bed in large floods.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Reneau, Steven; Cannon, Susan; Veenhuis, Jack
- Date of Issue
- 1999-04
- Units
- BAND
- Keywords
- Bandelier, Capulin Canyon, Jemez Mountains, post-fire, Stream Geomorphology
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Geology and Soils | Geomorphology | Stream/River Channel Characteristics , Ecological Framework: Water | Hydrology | Surface Water Dynamics , Ecological Framework: Landscapes | Fire and Fuel Dynamics | Fire and Fuel Dynamics