Maintain and restore hydrologic connectivity

Water moves through surface and subsurface flow pathways, some permanent and others more dynamic (Creed et al. 2011). Shifts in precipitation timing and intensity are expected to alter water flow pathways and result in more frequent low or zero flow days in drier seasons. This could transform perennial networks to intermittent, and especially affect ephemeral and intermittent systems known to have less water storage potential (e.g. headwater catchments) (Mengistu et al. 2013; Melillo et al. 2014; Jaeger et al. 2014). As the climate continues to change, addressing hydrologic connectivity in forest management may help to sustain water quality and storage, enhance the transfer of sediment and nutrients, and offer thermal protection and migration pathways for organisms (Creed et al. 2011; Mengistu et al. 2013; Capon et al. 2013; Jaeger et al. 2014; Ficke et al. 2007).

This strategy seeks to sustain fundamental watershed functions, addressing the maintenance of and restoration of soil-water connections and hydrologic function. A shift in climate may amplify and exacerbate existing ecosystem challenges resulting from land-uses that have fragmented, altered or obstructed water flow pathways. Sustaining hydrologic and ecosystem functions into the future is likely to depend on management planning that seeks to maintain the long-term conveyance of water through unobstructed hydrologic pathways, most notably actions that promote the enhancement of water infiltration by porous forest soils (Creed et al. 2011; Furniss et al. 2010).