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Thomas R Sando

Streams are classified as perennial (flowing uninterrupted, year-round) or intermittent (flowing part of the year) or ephemeral (flowing only during rainfall events). The classifications of “streamflow permanence” were primarily established in the middle 20th century and are often outdated and inaccurate today if they were not adjusted for changes in land use, wildfires, or climate. Understanding where streams are perennial is important for a variety of reasons. For example, perennial streams receive special regulatory protections under a variety of statutes, and provide important habitat for fish, wildlife, and other species. To predict the likelihood that streams are perennial, we compiled nearly 25,000 observations...
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The WY-MT WSC conducted a study to develop regression equations for estimating peak-flow frequencies in Montana, using channel-width characteristics. Channel widths were measured in the field at 69 streamgage sites. Chase, K.J., Sando, R., Armstrong, D.W., and McCarthy, P., 2021, Regional regression equations based on channel-width characteristics to estimate peak-flow frequencies at ungaged sites in Montana using peak-flow frequency data through water year 2011 (ver. 1.1, September 2021): U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2020–5142, 49 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20205142.
Categories: Data; Tags: Montana, geomorphology, water resources
National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) stream permanence classifications (SPC; perennial, intermittent, and ephemeral) are widely used for data visualization and applied science, and have implications for resource policy and management. NHD SPC were assigned using a combination of topographic field surveys and interviews with local residents. However, previous studies indicate that non‐NHD, in situ streamflow observations (NNO) frequently disagree with NHD SPC. We hypothesized that differences in annual climate conditions between map creation years and the years NNO were collected contributed to disagreement between NNO and NHD SPC. We compared NHD SPC to 10,055 NNO (classified as “wet” or “dry”) collected in the Pacific...
Categories: Publication; Types: Citation
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Field-verified irrigated lands data were collected for the Remote Sensing Component of the St. Mary-Milk Rivers Consumptive Use study to aid in the identification and delineation of agricultural fields that are irrigated in 2021 and 2022 in the Milk River basin. This field verification of irrigated fields will provide data that will be used to ground truth evapotranspiration estimates obtained in the Milk River basin using remote sensing methods. This work is part of a larger project aimed at developing a historical database representing monthly actual evapotranspiration (ETa) totals in the Milk River basin from 1985-present using remote sensing. This database will lay the foundation for the establishment of a remote...
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Small Prairie Stream Health Within Fort Berthold Indian Reservation
Project Overview The Fort Berthold Indian Reservation faces challenges in maintaining stream health due to recent extreme weather events, oil and gas development, and row crop expansion. Researchers supported by this North Central CASC project will assess how these changes affect stream health while providing career development for undergraduate researchers from Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College (NHSC) and United Tribes Technical College. The project will inform climate adaptation strategies and support sustainable resource management for the Mandan Arikara Nation. Project Summary The Fort Berthold Indian Reservation has faced many environmental challenges since 2001, including extreme drought and precipitation events,...
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