| dc.description.abstract | Located in Williamson County, Tennessee, East Fork Creek (EFC) is composed of numerous hillslope/valley systems that interact to supply sediment to the main valley of EFC. This study explores evidence that logging events in the late 19th century and early 20th century may have altered the storage and transport of sediment throughout EFC, causing an influx of mass to enter the EFC main valley. Measurements of depth to bedrock, channel width, ratio of mud/gravel, number of floodplain terraces, length of floodplains, valley width (toe to toe), channel width, and the total stream volume were collected every 50 meters from the mouth to the headwaters of the main channel in each of four representative sub catchments to provide the data to describe the mass storage and transport regimes within the greater EFC hillslope/valley system. A non-steady state condition is expected due to the recent history of logging (early 20th century) which resulted in land-surface disturbance and susceptibility to increased erosion. Further investigation of the variance in bedrock type, elevation, and landscape geomorphology of each sub catchment were also observed to be important factors in controlling sediment production and storage in EFC. The channels beds in EFC sub catchments were found to vary from exposed bedrock streams to having thick sediment cover, reflecting the rate of upstream bedrock type and sediment yield, affecting the amount of sediment deposited in the main valley of EFC. | |
