Urbanization has been associated with the degradation of streams, and a consequence of forest to urban land transition is a change in streamflow. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis is to examine the impacts of land-cover change in ten different watersheds in the rapidly urbanizing Atlanta, GA USA metropolitan area. Streamflow and precipitation data for a 30-year period (1986-2016) were analyzed in conjunction with land cover data from 1992, 2001, and 2011. Big Creek and Suwanee Creek experienced the most urbanization and increases (20%) in streamflow and runoff, and high flow (>95th percentile of flow) days doubled and increased 85%, respectively. Precipitation-adjusted streamflow for Peachtree Creek and Flint River decreased about 17%. Runoff ratios for South River were the highest among all watersheds, even the Etowah River, which remained moderately forested and had the most precipitation and slope.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:GEORGIA/oai:scholarworks.gsu.edu:geosciences_theses-1102 |
| Date | 06 January 2017 |
| Creators | Hill, T. Chee |
| Publisher | ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University |
| Source Sets | Georgia State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Geosciences Theses |
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