Erosion Control on Rural Unimproved Roads in the Stillwater Creek Watershed

Abstract

The purposes of this study was to measure sediment yields from two pairs of rural unpaved road segments in the Stillwater Creek Watershed in central Oklahoma and compare those measurements to the measurements obtained after the installation of erosion control practices. Data from over 60 storms were collected during June, 2004 to May, 2006. The total precipitation from individual storms ranged from 3-116 mm. Maximum five-minute storm intensities ranged from 3-162 mm hr-1. Sediment yields ranged from 0-5,700 kg. The overall erosion per unit area across all four segments was 269,200 kg ha-1. The average erosion across all four segments was 56 Mg/km/yr. There was a significant reduction in erosion between the pre and post installation periods on both sites. The implementation of erosion control practices resulted in a 51% reduction in erosion on one site and an 80% reduction in erosion on the other site.