Rivers, floodplains and wetlands

Water systems are tracked for flow variability, seasonal flood pulse timing, turbidity, salinity shifts, and habitat continuity for aquatic and semi-aquatic species. This module focuses on connectivity.

River branches

9 monitored channels with monthly discharge profiles.

Wetland cells

14 shallow water mosaics with reed and sedge gradients.

Floodplain plots

22 riparian plots for sediment and bank stability checks.

Hydrological condition table

Water Unit	Spring Peak	Late Summer Low	Turbidity Median	Habitat Continuity	Current Priority
Main Upper Channel	148 m3/s	32 m3/s	12 NTU	High	Maintain woody debris anchors.
South Side Channel	61 m3/s	9 m3/s	16 NTU	Moderate	Reduce bank trampling at crossing.
Delta Nursery Reach	44 m3/s	11 m3/s	14 NTU	High	Preserve shallow nursery pockets.
Coastal Marsh Fringe	Backwater pulse	Shallow standing	10 NTU	Moderate	Track salinity during dry wind weeks.
Eastern Bog Drain	23 m3/s	5 m3/s	8 NTU	High	Avoid trench deepening near peat core.

Flood pulse schedule

Week 11-15

Snowmelt-driven rise, side channel activation, sediment spread.

Week 16-22

Bankfull transitions, juvenile fish migration windows.

Week 23-35

Baseflow regime, warm-water stress monitoring.

Week 36-44

Storm pulse events, riparian erosion checks.

Week 45-10

Low-energy winter phase, ice-edge continuity survey.

Operational safeguards

Keep uncut vegetated strips near all high-shear banks.
Use temporary boardwalks on soft marsh edges.
Schedule heavy access outside spawning windows.
Retain small woody obstacles in nursery reaches.
Audit turbidity after every major rain event.