Progress in Developing Forest Management Guidelines for Increasing Snowpack Water Yields

From the Proceedings of the 1971 Meetings of the Arizona Section - American Water Resources Assn. and the Hydrology Section - Arizona Academy of Science - April 22-23, 1971, Tempe, ArizonaSnowmelt is a major source of runoff in Arizona for both reservoir systems and groundwater recharge. Because much of the Arizona snowmelt runoff occurs in ponderosa pine forests, it follows that appropriate forest management methods may enhance snowmelt water yield by manipulating tree spacing or overstory density. This paper attempts to establish guidelines for evaluating such forest management practices. Physiographic and climatic factors also affect runoff quantity, and it is conceivable that 2 sites of identical vegetation composition, but different in some combination of these factors might yield quite different amounts of runoff in response to some management practice. A pert network is presented illustrating the investigative framework for such a research effort. The major study activities of the framework are the identifying developing preliminary evaluations and preparing a comprehensive report. Three inventory evaluations to attempt identification of pertinent populations are currently being conducted and are described.This article is part of the Hydrology and Water Resources in Arizona and the Southwest collections. Digital access to this material is made possible by the Arizona-Nevada Academy of Science and the University of Arizona Libraries. For more information about items in this collection, contact anashydrology@gmail.com