ASTM D6145-97

Designation: D 6145 – 97
AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR TESTING AND MATERIALS
100 Barr Harbor Dr., West Conshohocken, PA 19428
Reprinted from the Annual Book of ASTM Standards. Copyright ASTM
Standard Guide for
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Monitoring Sediment in Watersheds
This standard is issued under the fixed designation D 6145; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A
superscript epsilon (e) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.
INTRODUCTION
Soil erosion and resulting sedimentation is the major cause of nonpoint source pollution that
threatens water resources. These impacts include: impaired aquatic habitat; destruction of sport and
commercial fisheries and shellfisheries; lost reservoir capacity for flood control, power generation, and
storage of potable water supplies; excessive flooding; impaired navigation; aggradation of irrigation
and drainage channels; lost productivity of lands swamped by deposition and infertile overwash;
increased levels of water treatment; lost or declined recreational opportunities; and impaired aesthetic
values. The amount of sediment in a stream can affect channel shape, sinuosity, and the relative
balance between riffles and pools. Excessive sediment in a stream causes a decrease in channel
capacity which in turn results in more frequent and larger out of bank floods. In addition to the adverse
physical effects of sediment loads, many nutrients, pesticides, and heavy metals are sorbed onto fine
sediment particles which may result in eutrophic or toxic waters. Indirect effects of increased sediment
loads may include increased stream temperatures and decreased intergravel dissolved oxygen levels.
This guide recommends a process for developing and implementing monitoring projects for
sediment in a watershed. It follows Guide D 5851 with more specifics applicable to watersheds and
sediment.
These guidelines are presented for use in the nationwide strategy for monitoring developed by the
Intergovernmental Task Force on Monitoring (ITFM). The nationwide monitoring strategy is an effort
to improve the technical aspects of water monitoring to support sound water-quality decision-making.
It is needed to integrate monitoring activities more effectively and economically and to achieve a
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better return of investments in monitoring projects (1) .
This guide is offered as a guide for standardizing methods used in projects to monitor and evaluate
actual and potential nonpoint and point source sediment pollution within a watershed. The guide is
applicable to landscapes and surface water resources, recognizing the need for a comprehensive
understanding of naturally occurring and manmade impacts to the entire watershed hydrologic system.
1. Scope ment deposits, particle size distribution, sediment volumes and
particle chemistry. Monitoring may include not only sediments
1.1 Purpose—This guide is intended to provide general
suspended in water but sediments deposited in fields, flood-
guidance on a watershed monitoring program directed toward
plains, and channel bottoms.
sediment. The guide offers a series of general steps without
setting forth a specific course of action. It gives advice for 1.3 This guide applies to surface waters as found in streams
establishing a monitoring program, not an implementation and rivers; lakes, ponds, reservoirs, estuaries, and wetlands.
program.
1.4 Limitations—This guide does not establish a standard
1.2 Sedimentation as referred to in this guide is the detach-
procedure to follow in all situations and it does not cover the
ment, entrainment, transportation, and deposition of eroded
detail necessary to define all of the needs of a particular
soil and rock particles. Specific types or parameters of sedi-
monitoring objective or project. Other standards and guides
ment may include: suspended sediment, bedload, bed material,
included in the reference and standard sections describe in
turbidity, wash load, sediment concentration, total load, sedi-
detail the procedures, equipment, operations, and site selection
for collecting, measuring, analyzing, and monitoring sediment
and related constituants.
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This test method is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee D-19 on Water
and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee D19.02 on General Specifications,
1.5 Additional ASTM and US Geological Survey standards
Technical Resources, and Statistical Methods.
applicable to sediment monitoring are listed in Appendix X1
Current edition approved June 10, 1997. Published September 1997.
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and Appendix X2. Due to the large number of optional
The boldface numbers given in parentheses refer to a list of references at the
end of this standard. standards and procedures involved in sediment monitoring,
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D 6145
most individual standards are not referenced in this document
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