Strategies for Managing the Effects of Urban Development on Streams

This report serves as a companion report associated with the NAWQA effects of urban development on stream ecosystems Circular 1373, and illustrates management strategies used in the United States to reduce the impacts of urban development on stream systems described in Coles and others, 2012 (see Effects of Urbanization on Stream Ecosystems). Chapter 2 of this report presents a brief history of urban stream management in the United States, providing a context for the management strategies presented in later chapters. Chapter 3 introduces broad management goals linked to the USGS urban study findings about the relation between urban development and the physical, chemical, and biological condition of stream systems, and illustrates how these goals have been addressed using case study examples.

Chapter 4 presents more detailed examples of management strategies that can be used to suppport the broad goals introduced in Chapter 3. The management strategies are drawn from the experiences of jurisdictions that are seeking to protect the condition of streams in urbanizing watersheds.
These strategies are presented not as recommended courses of action but as examples of how municipalities have responded to the challenges of managing urban streams. Chapter 5 discusses three recurring challenges faced by those managing urbanizing streams as they develop and implement management strategies to improve the health of these stream systems.

RELATED DOCUMENT: Effects of Urban Development on Stream Ecosystems in Nine Metropolitan Study Areas Across the United States