Large Woody Debris and Natural Disasters: Issues and Opportunities

Two federal research laboratories (the Sedimentation and River Hydraulics Group of the Bureau of Reclamation and the Environmental Laboratory, Engineer Research and Development Center, USACE) are leading an initiative with multiple tribal, agency, academic, and private sector partners to increase and prioritize research on large woody debris, raise its profile, and improve standards of practice in its utilization for restoration goals.  Disasters such as flood events and landslides represent important pulsed recruitment and redistribution processes, and they highlight the general failure of infrastructure design, resource management, regulatory mechanisms, and societal perceptions to accommodate this important element in aquatic and riparian systems.   This presentation will discuss the initiative and identify issues and opportunities presented by large wood dynamics in the contexts of natural disaster planning and response.