Bear Cr Jumps Into Road During Flood

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troutbert

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjrpV_A8eH0

This short video shows what happens when a stream avulses (jumps) into a road grade during a big flood. (Fall 2011)

The stream also jumped into the road grade here during the Jan. 1996 flood.

The stream is Bear Creek (also called Big Bear Creek) trib to Loyalsock Creek, with the mouth near Barbours.

Hammersley Fork also jumped into an old road grade during one of the floods. Or at least part of it did. Some of the water continued down the original stream channel and some went down the old rutted road grade.

Also Grays Run, Lycoming County jumped out onto Grays Run Road during one of the floods (Jan 1996 I think). They went in bulldozed a pretty long section of the stream channel after that.


 
Ah, fresh surfaces! I recall that the USFWS constructed some very expensive stream habitat structures on Bear Creek just a few years prior to the 2011 flood. Is this reach of stream near that project? If so, what was the effect of the avulsion on the project?
 
If the stream jumps into the road, one could make a fair arguement that there wasn't much of a "grade" to the road. This is the case with Hammersley. When the road is east of the stream there is a proper grade to it making it several feet above the stream, but once the road crosses the stream and runs along the west bank there is no such grade. The road was essentially at the stream bottom level, and now is at the stream bottom level.
 
Tups wrote:
Ah, fresh surfaces! I recall that the USFWS constructed some very expensive stream habitat structures on Bear Creek just a few years prior to the 2011 flood. Is this reach of stream near that project? If so, what was the effect of the avulsion on the project?
Click to expand...

The road parallels the stretch of stream where the project was done. I believe he said in the video that the stream jumped into the road for about 500 yards. The project extended over several miles (about 3 miles I think).

I do not know what has been done regarding post-flood work to the road and stream.

Streams jumping into road grades is pretty common. It's not limited to Bear Creek by any means.

That's the only video I've seen that shows it actually happening, and it's an eye-opener. It provides food for thought about conflicts between streams and roads in the floodplains.

When you watch that video, you can also click on his channel, and see a few more short videos of Bear Creek after the flood.

 
It's been several years since I've been involved, but the Center for Dirt and Gravel Road Studies http://www.dirtandgravel.psu.edu/index.html
deals with this topic.
Understanding the dynamic nature of stream meander and that every road and trail is a water barrier and diverter is the foundation.
It's learning to work with natural physics instead of repeatedly fighting against it.

 
What would be a good solution(s)?

In this case, and similar cases?
 
That's too big a question.
First, I'd check either with Lycoming County conservation district's E&S Technician at (570) 433-3003, or with the municipality that owns that section of roadway.
Look at their website, if they have one.
If they don't, check to see if the roadway has been listed on the D&GRP to-do list for funding.
My understanding is that D&GR programs are to get a good boost of some of your tax money from Corbett's "tax-'em at the pump, not at the frackin well" program.
My guess is this section would be a great candidate.
 
See link above. I apologize for my inability to connect you directly to an aerial of the avulsion site at the PGC Mapper, but I'm not sure it's even possible to do so.

My best guess is that the Avulsion site which is the subject of the video is located at coordiantes 41.383831 and -76.780913.

The PGC aerial was apparently flown prior to the 2011 flood and avulsion.

Also check out Google Earth at these coordinates. The GEarth photo was flown on 5-4-13, well after the 2011 flood. The GEarth photo shows that Dunwoody Road has been repaired in place, but the new channel remains. I suppose part of the new channel was filled in order to re-build the road.

It's instructive to look at the PGC aerial and Google Earth aerial side by side.

Disclaimer: I've never been to Big Bear Creek, so my speculation about the location of the avulsion is just that - speculation, but an educated guess.
 
Troutbert: I took your advice and looked at the other Big Bear Creek videos posted by "DJPutnam" at You Tube. It occurs to me that DJPutnam is Dave Putnam, a retired US Fish and Wildlife Biologist who was the Project Manager (I believe) for the Big Bear Creek Stream Restoration project.

I do not see any in-stream devices within the avulsion site when viewing the PGC aerial. At least none are obvious to me.
 
If this is the stream and watershed of which you speak, I am fairly certain it will be addressed ...

Whatever that means

http://www.lycoming.edu/cwi/pdfs/bigBearCreek/bigBearPresentation.pdf

 
http://directives.sc.egov.usda.gov/OpenNonWebContent.aspx?content=17803.wba
 
The documents Vern and Tups posted are pre-flood documents about the stream habitat project.

To find a short post-flood report Google:

"Biological Response of Two North Central PA Streams After Flood of September 2011"

(I can't figure out how to create a link. Maybe someone else can.)


 
Is this what you want troutbert?

http://www.srhces.org/site/Portals/10/documents/2012_Zimmerman_Biological%20Response%20of%202%20NC%20PA%20Streams%20after%20Sep2011%20Flood.pdf
 
TB: The report I posted is a 2007 post-construction assessment of the Big Bear Creek project by Dave Putnam (et al), USFWS Project Manger for the project. Thanks to Vern for posting the 2011 post-flood report.
 
According to the 2012 post-flood report 75% of the stream "restoration" structures on Big Bear creek were destroyed by the flood. That turned out to be a very expensive demonstration project. But hey, lessons learned.
 
One of the stated goals of the BB Cr restoration project was to increase brook trout numbers in the stream. The 2010 post-restoration fish survey indicates that BT outnumbered ST by 2 or 3 to 1. However, after the 2011 flood destroyed most of the restoration structures, the ST popn appears to be rebounding. How can that be?

On the other hand, we don't have a pre-project comparison of BT/ST numbers, so we can't assume any cause and effect relationship.
 
My gut tells me that V-weirs and J-Hooks favor brown trout (BT) over brook trout (ST). These structures are designed to create deep scour holes on the downstream side. It is my experience that BT are much more dependent upon deep holes than are ST. Now that the weirs and jhooks are gone, the BT no longer have such a habitat-based advantage.
 
vern wrote:
Is this what you want troutbert?

http://www.srhces.org/site/Portals/10/documents/2012_Zimmerman_Biological%20Response%20of%202%20NC%20PA%20Streams%20after%20Sep2011%20Flood.pdf
Click to expand...

Yes. Thanks.
 
TB: In your opinion, from an ecological perspective, is stream avulsion good, bad or indifferent?
 
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