Stream Banks - Riparian Foundations

When stream banks are resistant to stream horsepower, the channel tends to be
narrow and deep. That becomes the foundation of a stable riparian area.
  • Deeper, narrower streams flow through valleys where soils are finer in texture.
  • Finer soils are more cohesive, they bind better than those composed of
    coarse gravel and rubble.
  • Soil types and bank stability are linked to vegetation cover - its health, diversity
    and abundance.


    • Continuous, or prolonged livestock use
    of stream banks leads to a crumbling
    of the foundation.
  • Bank trampling and streambank
    collapse occur with high livestock
    use of streamside areas.
  • High livestock use can also alter,
    reduce or eliminate bank vegetation.

    Stream channels and banks reflect a
    stream's history and our use of riparian
    areas.

  • A wide, flat channel with low banks
    may not be what a stream wants to
    be; these features may represent
    our influence on the stream.

    Changes in channel shape, to wider, shallower forms, can take years,
    decades and even generations to
    stablize and evolve back to narrow,
    deep channels again.

  • Healing takes revegetation, sediment
    deposition and bank rebuilding.

    • Stream banks: build a good
    foundation for riparian
    areas and for your ranch.

    Hoof power can't be underestimated. Cattle exert about 10 times the weight or
    pressure per unit area as a D9 cat with a blade. The foundation can't withstand
    this pressure for prolonged periods.












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