Estimating Annual Foliage Biomass for a Deciduous Urban Stream

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This study explored the amount, type, and distribution of annual tree canopy foliage that may enter Fanno Creek in Portland, Oregon. The creek is populated with dozens of deciduous tree species, including Oregon ash, Oregon oak, Douglas fir, aspen, willow, red alder, and bigleaf maple. This abundant foliage, and its associated leaf litter, decomposes and consumes oxygen from the stream to supply nutrients to Fanno Creek. In order to quantify how much leaf litter is available, lidar data were used to estimate the annual foliage biomass, in metric tons, for 13 stream reaches along the creek.

Lidar data and high-resolution imagery used to map available canopy biomass along a segment of Fanno Creek, Oregon.

Lidar data and high-resolution imagery used to map available canopy biomass along a segment of Fanno Creek, Oregon.

http://or.water.usgs.gov/tualatin/

Author Name
Steven Sobieszczyk
Author Email
ssobie@usgs.gov