WINTER 2008 Wildland Hydrology ESRM 426/CFR 525
http://www.cfr.washington.edu/classes.fe.425/
Instructor: Susan Bolton
244 Bloedel
685-7651
Office Hours: Tuesday 10:30-11:30 and by appointment
Lecture Schedule: TTh 11:30-1:20 WFS 107
Lab Th 11:30-2:20 WFS 107 and UW Arboretum
Text: Environmental Hydrology - 2nd edition by Andy Ward and Stanley Trimble
Course Objectives:
This course is designed to give you a basic understanding of the hydrologic cycle especially in wildland watersheds. Management effects on various components of the hydrologic cycle will also be addressed. Assignments are designed to give you practical knowledge about how to do routine hydrologic analyses and design. Homework is due every Thursday at the start of class. Students will perform hydrologic measurements in the field and use their data to understand and interpret the hydrologic cycle. By the end of the course, students will be able to independently conduct basic hydrologic research and compute basic watershed water balances.
This includes:
1. How to do unit conversions for hydrologic analysis, especially with
respect to depth, area, volume relationships
2. Methods on filling in missing precipitation data and changing point
data to areal data
3. How to measure interception and throughfall components of the
hydrologic cycle
4. How to measure infiltration rates
5. Understanding how soil moisture varies in space and time
6. How to compute soil moisture
7. Understanding basic ground water principles
8. Understanding how precipitation, soil moisture, groundwater and stream flow are related
9. How to measure stream velocity and discharge using different methods
10.How to compute return periods for hydrologic events and compute risk
11.How and when to use the Rational Formula and the SCS Curve Number method for computing runoff
12.Awareness of common errors in hydrologic data collection and how to
account for them.
Grading: ESRM 426 (undergraduate level)
Assignments 45%
Test 25%
Report 25%
Participation 5%
CFR 525 (graduate level)
Assignments 40%
Test 20%
Report 15%
Topics 15%
Presentation 10%
Students signed up for CFR 525 will locate and critically review a current (no older than 2002)journal article on hydrology every week, due on Tuesdays.
TOPICS for CFR 525 graduate level students
Due Jan 15: Precipitation Due Feb 19: Runoff/Streamflow
Due Jan 22: Interception Due Feb 26: Hydrographs/Frequency Analysis
Due Jan 29: Evapotranspiration Due Mar 4: Land use effects on hydrology
Due Feb 5: Infiltration Due Mar 11: Sediment issues
Due Feb 12: Ground water
PRESENTATION for
CFR 525 students: Each grad student will select one of their reports and
make a presentation to the class the last week of class.
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Grades are assigned on the UW grade point scale. They are equivalent to letter grades as follows.
A > 90% 3.5-4.0 Exceptional work
B 80-89% 2.5-3.4 Above average work
C 70-79% 1.5-2.4 Average work
D 60-69% 0.7-1.4 Below average work
F < 60% 0.0 Unacceptable work
Grades will usually be scaled according to the above table. In the event that a curve may need to be used, the above relationships will be modified.
COURSE OUTLINE
Week 1 Course Introduction and Components of the Hydrologic
Jan 8, 10 Cycle
Read Chap. 1, sects. 1.1-1.4, Chap 14, sects. 14.1-14.5
and class handouts on significant figures
Week 2 Weather and Precipitation
Jan 15,17 Read Chap. 2
Week 3 Interception and Evapotranspiration (ET)
Jan 22, 24 Read Chap 10, sects. 10.1-10.9
Week 4 ET and Infiltration
Jan 29, 31 Read Chap 3, sects 3.1-3.5, 3.85,3.87-3.89;
Chap. 4
Week 5 Infiltration and Ground Water
Feb 5, 7 Read Chap. 11.1-11.3
Week 6 Runoff and Streamflow
Feb 12, 14 Read Chap. 5.1-5.6,5.8,5.11 and 6 and Chap 10
sects. 10.10-10.11
Feb 19, 21 Hydrographs and Frequency Analyses
Read Chap. 12, sect. 12.4 and Chap 7, sects. 7.1-7.3
TEST on Feb.
19th
Week 8 Human Impacts on Hydrologic Cycle
Feb 26, 28 Read Chap. 12, sects. 12.1-12.5
Week 9 Soil erosion and sediment budgets
Mar 4, 6 Read Chap 9.1-9.7
Week 10 Course review and graduate student presentations
Mar 11, 13
HYDROLOGIC REPORT DUE Wed March 19 before 5 p.m.
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Lecture and Lab schedules are approximate and may shift if certain topics require more time.
LABORATORY/FIELD SCHEDULE
Labs in the field will be held in the UW Arboretum. Vans are available to drive to the Arboretum.
Labs in the class will take place in Wink 107.
Jan 10 Units of Measurement, Hydrologic Cycle and Data (in class/field) Install precip gages and throughfall gages for class/lab
Jan 17 Instrumentation and Precipitation (field)
Jan 24 Weekly data (field)
Jan 31 Weekly data and soil texture (field)
Feb 7 Weekly data and lecture (class/field)
Feb 14 Weekly data and Infiltration lab(field)
Feb 21 Weekly data and lecture(class/field)
Feb 28 Weekly data and Channel and Velocity Measurement (field)
Mar 6 Weekly data and lecture (class/field)
Mar 13 Final field visit, no data collection (field)
CLASS POLICIES
Tests will be given over course material. If you miss a test due to an unexcused absence you will receive a 0 for the test. Excused absences require prior notification to me. Make-ups will be given for excused absences only.
Late homework is marked off 10% the first day and 5% for each day thereafter.
Attendance is not mandatory, but much test material will come out of lecture material. The course outline is approximate and may shift if some material takes more or less time than anticipated.