Pacific Southwest Research Station

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Title: Monitoring baseline suspended sediment in forested basins: the effects of sampling on suspended sediment rating curves

Author: "Thomas, Robert B."

Date: 1988

Source: Hydrological Sciences Journal 33(5): 499-514.

Description: "Abstract - Rating curves are widely used for directly assessing changes in the suspended sediment delivery process and indirectly for estimating total yields. Four sampling methods were simulated-over a 31-day record of suspended sediment from the North Fork of the Mad River near Korbel, California. The position and size of the four groups of plotted slope/intercept pairs indicated differences in bias and variance among the methods. Estimates of total yield for the 31-day period and for storms of three sizes were also biased according to sampling method. A standard bias-correcting technique improved yield estimates, but did not remove sampling bias uniformly. Methods of data collection have a large and systematic effect on the estimation of rating-curve parameters and on estimates of suspended sediment yield. Differences attributed to land management may, in fact, result from changes in sampling methods."

Key Words: "PSW4351, suspended sediment, sampling methods, measurement, sediment transport"

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"Thomas, Robert B."  1988.  Monitoring baseline suspended sediment in forested basins: the effects of sampling on suspended sediment rating curves  Hydrological Sciences Journal 33(5): 499-514..