Little Arnot Run: An Evaluation of Groundwater-Surface Water Interactions with Regard to Hyporheic Exchange and Temperature
Author:
Mackenzie Flynn and Bree McCullough ’22Co-Authors:
Benjamin R. HayesFaculty Mentor(s):
Ben Hayes, Watershed Sciences and EngineeringFunding Source:
United States Forest ServiceAbstract
Little Arnot Run is a second-order stream in the Allegheny National Forest, Pennsylvania. In many areas the stream was dredged, straightened, and converted to a narrow, deep, single-thread channel, which continues to be disconnected from the floodplain. This project is part of a larger stream restoration study by the United States Forest Service (USFS) and Bucknell University currently underway working to characterize the factors controlling geomorphic processes operating within the watershed in order to direct restoration activities set to take place later in the year. Preliminary analysis of groundwater piezometers, stream temperature gage station data, and weather station data suggests significant hyporheic exchange to the channel. The current assessment of both shallow and alluvial aquifers as well as in deeper sections of the stream is being done in order to quantify groundwater-surface water exchange and potential for reconnecting abandoned side channels and vernal pools on the floodplain.