ASTM D6145-97(2018)
(Guide)Standard Guide for Monitoring Sediment in Watersheds
Standard Guide for Monitoring Sediment in Watersheds
SIGNIFICANCE AND USE
4.1 This guide is intended to be used in the planning stage or phase of developing a sediment monitoring program. This guide is an assembly of the components common to all aspects of watershed sediment monitoring and fulfills a need in the development of a common framework for a better coordinated and a more unified approach to sediment monitoring in watersheds.
4.2 The user of this guide is not assumed to be a trained technical practitioner in the water quality, sedimentation, or hydrology fields. The intended users are managers and planners who need information to develop a water quality monitoring program or project with an emphasis in sediment and hydrology. Sediment specialists will also find information on procedures, equipment, methodology, and operations to conduct a monitoring program.
4.3 This guide is used during the planning process of developing, designing, and re-evaluating a sediment monitoring program.
SCOPE
1.1 Purpose—This guide is intended to provide general guidance on a watershed monitoring program directed toward sediment. The guide offers a series of general steps without setting forth a specific course of action. It gives advice for establishing a monitoring program, not an implementation program.
1.2 Sedimentation as referred to in this guide is the detachment, entrainment, transportation, and deposition of eroded soil and rock particles. Specific types or parameters of sediment may include: suspended sediment, bedload, bed material, turbidity, wash load, sediment concentration, total load, sediment deposits, particle size distribution, sediment volumes and particle chemistry. Monitoring may include not only sediments suspended in water but sediments deposited in fields, floodplains, and channel bottoms.
1.3 This guide applies to surface waters as found in streams and rivers; lakes, ponds, reservoirs, estuaries, and wetlands.
1.4 Limitations—This guide does not establish a standard procedure to follow in all situations and it does not cover the detail necessary to define all of the needs of a particular monitoring objective or project. Other standards and guides included in the reference and standard sections describe in detail the procedures, equipment, operations, and site selection for collecting, measuring, analyzing, and monitoring sediment and related constituants.
1.5 Additional ASTM and U.S. Geological Survey standards applicable to sediment monitoring are listed in Appendix X1 and Appendix X2. Due to the large number of optional standards and procedures involved in sediment monitoring, most individual standards are not referenced in this document. Standards and procedures have been grouped in the appendices according to the type of analyses or sampling that would be required for a specific type of measurement or monitoring.
1.6 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety, health, and environmental practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.
1.7 This international standard was developed in accordance with internationally recognized principles on standardization established in the Decision on Principles for the Development of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations issued by the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.
General Information
Relations
Standards Content (Sample)
This international standard was developed in accordance with internationally recognized principles on standardization established in the Decision on Principles for the
Development of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations issued by the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.
Designation: D6145 − 97 (Reapproved 2018)
Standard Guide for
Monitoring Sediment in Watersheds
This standard is issued under the fixed designation D6145; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A
superscript epsilon (´) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.
INTRODUCTION
Soil erosion and resulting sedimentation is the major cause of nonpoint source pollution that
threatens water resources. These impacts include: impaired aquatic habitat; destruction of sport and
commercialfisheriesandshellfisheries;lostreservoircapacityforfloodcontrol,powergeneration,and
storage of potable water supplies; excessive flooding; impaired navigation; aggradation of irrigation
and drainage channels; lost productivity of lands swamped by deposition and infertile overwash;
increased levels of water treatment; lost or declined recreational opportunities; and impaired aesthetic
values. The amount of sediment in a stream can affect channel shape, sinuosity, and the relative
balance between riffles and pools. Excessive sediment in a stream causes a decrease in channel
capacitywhichinturnresultsinmorefrequentandlargeroutofbankfloods.Inadditiontotheadverse
physical effects of sediment loads, many nutrients, pesticides, and heavy metals are sorbed onto fine
sedimentparticleswhichmayresultineutrophicortoxicwaters.Indirecteffectsofincreasedsediment
loads may include increased stream temperatures and decreased intergravel dissolved oxygen levels.
This guide recommends a process for developing and implementing monitoring projects for
sediment in a watershed. It follows Guide D5851 with more specifics applicable to watersheds and
sediment.
These guidelines are presented for use in the nationwide strategy for monitoring developed by the
IntergovernmentalTask Force on Monitoring (ITFM).The nationwide monitoring strategy is an effort
to improve the technical aspects of water monitoring to support sound water-quality decision-making.
It is needed to integrate monitoring activities more effectively and economically and to achieve a
better return of investments in monitoring projects (1).
This guide is offered as a guide for standardizing methods used in projects to monitor and evaluate
actual and potential nonpoint and point source sediment pollution within a watershed. The guide is
applicable to landscapes and surface water resources, recognizing the need for a comprehensive
understandingofnaturallyoccurringandmanmadeimpactstotheentirewatershedhydrologicsystem.
1. Scope 1.2 Sedimentation as referred to in this guide is the
detachment, entrainment, transportation, and deposition of
1.1 Purpose—This guide is intended to provide general
eroded soil and rock particles. Specific types or parameters of
guidance on a watershed monitoring program directed toward
sediment may include: suspended sediment, bedload, bed
sediment. The guide offers a series of general steps without
material, turbidity, wash load, sediment concentration, total
setting forth a specific course of action. It gives advice for
load, sediment deposits, particle size distribution, sediment
establishing a monitoring program, not an implementation
volumes and particle chemistry. Monitoring may include not
program.
only sediments suspended in water but sediments deposited in
fields, floodplains, and channel bottoms.
1.3 This guide applies to surface waters as found in streams
This guide is under the jurisdiction ofASTM Committee D19 on Water and is
and rivers; lakes, ponds, reservoirs, estuaries, and wetlands.
thedirectresponsibilityofSubcommitteeD19.02onQualitySystems,Specification,
1.4 Limitations—This guide does not establish a standard
and Statistics.
Current edition approved Aug. 1, 2018. Published September 2018. Originally
procedure to follow in all situations and it does not cover the
approved in 1997. Last previous edition approved in 2012 as D6145 – 97 (2012).
detail necessary to define all of the needs of a particular
DOI: 10.1520/D6145-97R18.
2 monitoring objective or project. Other standards and guides
The boldface numbers given in parentheses refer to a list of references at the
end of this standard. included in the reference and standard sections describe in
Copyright © ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959. United States
D6145 − 97 (2018)
detail the procedures, equipment, operations, and site selection 3.2.4 measurement, n—determining the value of a charac-
for collecting, measuring, analyzing, and monitoring sediment teristic within a representative sample or in situ determinations
and related constituants. of selected components of riverine, lacustrine, or estuarine
systems.
1.5 Additional ASTM and U.S. Geological Survey stan-
dards applicable to sediment monitoring are listed in Appendix 3.2.5 nonpoint source pollution, n—a condition of water
X1 and Appendix X2. Due to the large number of optional within a water body caused by the presence of undesirable
standards and procedures involved in sediment monitoring,
materials that enter the water system from diffuse locations
most individual standards are not referenced in this document. with no particular point of origin.
Standardsandprocedureshavebeengroupedintheappendices
3.2.6 resource management system (RMS), n—a combina-
according to the type of analyses or sampling that would be
tion of conservation practices identified by the primary use of
required for a specific type of measurement or monitoring.
the land that will protect the soil resource base, maintain
1.6 This standard does not purport to address all of the
acceptable water quality, and maintain acceptable ecological
safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the
and management levels for the selected resource use.
responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro-
3.2.7 watershed, n—all lands enclosed by a continuous
priate safety, health, and environmental practices and deter-
hydrologic surface drainage divide and lying upslope from a
mine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.
specified point on a stream.
1.7 This international standard was developed in accor-
dance with internationally recognized principles on standard-
4. Significance and Use
ization established in the Decision on Principles for the
Development of International Standards, Guides and Recom-
4.1 This guide is intended to be used in the planning stage
mendations issued by the World Trade Organization Technical
or phase of developing a sediment monitoring program. This
Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.
guide is an assembly of the components common to all aspects
of watershed sediment monitoring and fulfills a need in the
2. Referenced Documents development of a common framework for a better coordinated
and a more unified approach to sediment monitoring in
2.1 ASTM Standards:
watersheds.
D1129 Terminology Relating to Water
D4410 Terminology for Fluvial Sediment
4.2 The user of this guide is not assumed to be a trained
D4411 Guide for Sampling Fluvial Sediment in Motion
technical practitioner in the water quality, sedimentation, or
D4581 Guide for Measurement of Morphologic Character-
hydrology fields. The intended users are managers and plan-
istics of Surface Water Bodies (Withdrawn 2013)
ners who need information to develop a water quality moni-
D4823 Guide for Core Sampling Submerged, Unconsoli-
toring program or project with an emphasis in sediment and
dated Sediments
hydrology. Sediment specialists will also find information on
D5851 Guide for Planning and Implementing aWater Moni-
procedures, equipment, methodology, and operations to con-
toring Program
duct a monitoring program.
4.3 This guide is used during the planning process of
3. Terminology
developing, designing, and re-evaluating a sediment monitor-
3.1 Definitions:
ing program.
3.1.1 For definitions of terms used in this standard, refer to
Terminologies D1129 and D4410.
5. Monitoring Purpose
3.2 Definitions of Terms Specific to This Standard:
5.1 A watershed monitoring program for sediment is com-
3.2.1 assess, v—to determine the significance, value, and
prised of a series of steps designed to collect sediment and
importance of the data collected and recorded.
related flow data in order to achieve a stated objective. The
3.2.2 best management practice (BMP), n—a practice or
purposes of monitoring may be several and include: analyzing
combination of practices that are determined by state or
trends, establishing baseline conditions, studying the fate and
area-wide planning agencies to be the most effective and
transport of sediment and associated pollutants, defining criti-
practical means of controlling point and nonpoint pollution.
cal source areas, assessing compliance, measuring the effec-
tiveness of management practices, project monitoring, imple-
3.2.3 hydrograph, n—a graphical representation of the
mentation monitoring, making wasteload allocations, testing
discharge, stage, velocity, available power, or other property of
models, defining a water quality problem, and conducting
stream flow at a point with respect to time.
research.
5.2 Monitoring to analyze trends is used to determine how
water quality or sediment load changes over time. Normally,
For referenced ASTM standards, visit the ASTM website, www.astm.org, or
contact ASTM Customer Service at service@astm.org. For Annual Book of ASTM
measurements will be made at regular well-spaced time inter-
Standards volume information, refer to the standard’s Document Summary page on
vals in order to determine the long term trend in some
the ASTM website.
sedimentation parameter. Typically the observations are not
The last approved version of this historical standard is referenced on
www.astm.org. taken specifically to evaluate BMPs or management activities,
D6145 − 97 (2018)
water quality models, or water quality standards, although Quality Monitoring Handbook (2), the ITFM reports (1, 3, 4,
trend data may be utilized, in part, for one of these other 5), and EPA Guidelines (6, 7).
purposes.
6. Monitoring Components
5.3 Baseline monitoring is used to characterize existing
sediment or water quality conditions, and to establish a data
6.1 This guide suggests and discusses the following steps in
base for planning or future comparisons. Baseline monitoring
designing a watershed monitoring program for sediment. More
should capture as much of the temporal variations as possible
detail on each step may be found in USDA-NRCS Monitoring
in order to assess seasonal and long term climatic influences
Handbook (2).
upon runoff and sediment yield. In some cases baseline
6.1.1 Identify Need—The first step is to define the need for
monitoring is included as the early stage of trend monitoring.
water quality monitoring. The need statement should include
5.4 Fate and transport monitoring is conducted to determine several components: the potential or real water quality issue
whether sediment and associated pollutants move and where
requiring attention, the potential use impairment or threats, the
they may go. name of the actual water resource(s), and finally the potential
sources that may cause the problem(s) (2). Very often the need
5.5 Sediment monitoring can be used to locate critical
is to identify a water quality problem but in some cases, the
source areas within watersheds exhibiting greater pollution or
need may be to assess the existing water quality whether a
loading potential than other areas.
problem exists or not. An example of a need statement might
5.6 Sediment monitoring may also be used to assess com-
be: “The decline in shellfish in Big Bay is due to accelerated
pliance with water quality management plans or standards.
sedimentation caused by excessive erosion from forestry op-
This is the monitoring used to determine whether specified
erations within the Trout Brook watershed.” Since sediment
water-quality criteria are being met. The criteria may be
may originate or become resuspended from a vast variety of
numerical (quantitative) or descriptive (qualitative).
nonpoint and point sources, the cause(s) of the sediment
problem may be difficult to establish or distinguish unless
5.7 Sediment monitoring may assess the effectiveness of
detailed monitoring plans are implemented.
individual management practices or resource management
systems for improving water quality or, in some cases, may be
6.2 Monitoring Objectives—The second step in developing
used to evaluate the effect of an entire program in a watershed.
a sediment monitoring program is to define the monitoring
Evaluating individual BMPs may require detailed and special-
objectives. The objectives of the monitoring study should
ized measurements made at the practice site or immediately
address the water quality need or problem. An objective
adjacent to the management practice. Monitoring the overall
statement should include an infinitive verb, an object word or
effectiveness of BMPs is usually done in the stream channel
phrase, and some constraints on the objective such as the
and it may be difficult to relate measured values to individual
surface or ground water watershed boundaries and variables to
practices.
monitor. An example of a monitoring objective might be: “To
5.8 Implementation monitoring may assess whether BMPs
determine the effect of implementing best management prac-
were installed or implemented, or if significant land uses tices on sediment concentration or sediment yield in Trout
changes occurred. Typically this activity is carried out as an
Brook.” When several objectives are used, a hierarchical
administrative review or a monitoring of landuse changes. On approach may be used to determine higher priority objectives.
its own, however, implementation monitoring cannot directly
An objective tree can be used to distinguish among several
link management activities to water quality or sediment yield, objectives. To determine how several objectives can be linked,
as no actual sediment or water measurements were taken.
the following question can be asked: “Does the achievement of
objectiveAcontribute directly to the achievement of objective
5.9 Monitoring of water bodies receiving runoff and sedi-
B?”To assess whether objectives are being achieved, objective
ment or other suspended loads can be used to make wasteload
attributes could be determined.These attributes may be binary,
allocations between various point and nonpoint
...
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