Deterministic Approach to Identify Ordinary High Water Marks Using Hydrologic and Hydraulic Attributes
Publication: Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Volume 143, Issue 5
Abstract
Hydraulic design and environmental permitting require the knowledge of ordinary high water marks (OHWMs) because they determine the federal jurisdictional limits over nontidal waters. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) uses OHWMs for regulation of the “Waters of the United States” as well as for authorizing activities such as stream restoration and bank stabilization. Current methods to determine OHWMs are based on detailed on-site surveys to identify physical characteristics like scouring, deposition around the banks, absence of vegetation, and water staining. These characteristics are site specific so there are fluctuations in measurements based on the water body, weather conditions, channel morphology, slope, fluvial patterns, and size of the channel. This study proposes an objective approach to determine OHWMs in the absence of clear physical indicators. This study uses hydrologic and hydraulic modeling to relate OHWMs to storm return periods by analyzing hydraulic and hydrologic parameters corresponding to design streamflow events for 26 watersheds in Indiana. The results show that OHWMs correspond to discharges that have return periods ranging from 0.7 to 1.1 years with a mean return period of about 0.92 years. The OHWM discharges are then related to 100-year discharges to enable the use of this relationship in approximately estimating the OHWM discharge when the 100-year discharge is known. For Indiana, it is found that the ratio of OHWM discharge and 100-year discharge has an average value of 4.99% for the northern part, 3.60% for the central part, and 5.49% for the southern part. The regression equations and range of OHWM attributes developed in this study can be used as a guide for OHWM determination for ungauged sites that do not have physical indicators for OHWMs.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Acknowledgments
This work was supported by grants from the Indiana Department of Transportation under the Joint Transportation Research Program of Purdue University. We thank INDOT for providing valuable insights and data for Indiana. We also thank the editor and three anonymous reviewers of this manuscript for providing constructive comments to revise the manuscript. Finally, we would like to thank Ms. Kimberly Peterson from the Lyles School of Civil Engineering at Purdue University for proofreading the final version of this manuscript.
References
Abdolhay, A., Saghafian, B., Soom, M. A. M., and Ghazali, A. H. B. (2012). “Identification of homogenous regions in Gorganrood basin (Iran) for the purpose of regionalization.” Nat. Hazards, 61(3), 1427–1442.
ArcGIS Release 10 [Computer software]. Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI), Redlands, CA.
Abdulla, F. A., and Lettenmaier, D. P. (1997). “Development of regional parameter estimation equations for a macroscale hydrologic model.” J. Hydrol., 197(1–4), 230–257.
Bieger, K., Rathjens, H., Allen, P. M., and Arnold, J. G. (2015). “Development and evaluation of bankfull hydraulic geometry relationships for the physiographic regions of the United States.” J. Am. Water Resour. Assoc., 51(3), 842–858.
Bonnin, G. M., Martin, D., Lin, B., Parzybok, T., Yekta, M., and Riley, D. (2006). “NOAA atlas 14 volume 2 version 3.0: Precipitation-frequency atlas of the United States.” National Weather Service, Silver Spring, MD.
Brunner, G. W. (2010). “HEC-RAS river analysis system. hydraulic reference manual, version 4.1.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers—Hydrologic Engineering Center, Davis, CA.
Burn, D. H. (1988). “Delineation of groups for regional flood frequency analysis.” J. Hydrol., 104(1-4), 345–361.
Castro, J. M., and Jackson, P. L. (2001). “Bankfull discharge recurrence intervals and regional hydraulic geometry relationships: Patterns in the Pacific Northwest, USA.” J. Am. Water Resour. Assoc., 37(5), 1249–1262.
Cody, R. P., and Smith, J. K. (2006). Applied statistics and the SAS programming language, 5th Ed., Pearson Prentice Hall, NJ.
Curtis, K., and Lichvar, R. W. (2010). “Updated datasheet for the identification of the ordinary high water mark (OHWM) in the Arid West Region of the Western United States.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center, Hanover, NH.
Curtis, K. E., Lichvar, R. W., and Dixon, L. E. (2011). “Ordinary high flows and the stage—Discharge relationship in the Arid West Region.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center, Hanover, NH.
Feldman, A. D. (2000). “Hydrologic modeling system HEC-HMS technical reference manual.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers—Hydrologic Engineering Center, Davis, CA.
Fleming, M., and Doan, J. (2009). “HEC-GeoHMS geospatial hydrologic modelling extension: User’s manual version 4.2.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers—Hydrologic Engineering Center, Davis, CA.
Gartner, J. D., Lichvar, R. W., Mersel, M. K., and Lefebvre, L. E. (2016). “Integrating hydrologic modeling, hydraulic modeling, and field data for ordinary high water mark delineation.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers—Hydrologic Engineering Center, Hanover, NH.
Gesch, D. B. (2007). “The national elevation dataset.” Digital elevation model technologies and applications: The DEM users manual, 2nd Ed., Maune D., ed., American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, Bethesda, MD, 99–118.
Harkins, J. R., and Green, M. E. (1981). “Depth estimation for ordinary high water of streams in the mobile district of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Alabama and adjacent States.” United States Dept. of Interior Geological Survey, Tuscaloosa, AL.
He, L., and Wilkerson, G. V. (2011). “Improved bankfull channel geometry prediction using two-year return-period discharge.” J. Am. Water Resour. Assoc., 47(6), 1298–1316.
INDOT (Indiana Dept. of Transportation). (2013). “Design manual. Part 2: Hydrology and hydraulics.” Indianapolis.
Jansen, S. D. (1977). “Bankfull discharge of Indiana streams.” Indiana Acad. Sci., 87, 321–328.
Kutner, M. H., Nachtsheim, C. J., Neter, J., and Li, W. (2010). Applied linear statistical models, 5th Ed., McGraw-Hill/Irwin, New York.
Lefebvre, L., Lichvar, R., and Curtis, K. (2013). “Survey of OHWM indicator distribution patterns across arid west landscapes.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center, Honover, NH.
Lichvar, R., and Mccolley, S. (2008). “A field guide to the identification of the ordinary high water mark (OHWM) in the arid west region of the Western United States (a delineation manual).” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center, Honover, NH.
Lichvar, R. W., Finnegan, D. C., Ericsson, M. P., and Ochs, W. (2006). “Distribution of ordinary high water mark (OHWM) indicators and their reliability in identifying the limits of ‘Waters of the United States’ in arid southwestern channels.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center, Hanover, NH.
Lichvar, R. W., Ochs, W. R., Gaines, S. M., Hampshire, N., District, S. F., and Francisco, S. (2008). “Evaluation of surface features for delineating the ordinary high water boundary on playas in the arid western United States.” Wetlands, 28(1), 68–80.
Lichvar, R. W., and Wakeley, J. S. (2004). “Review of ordinary high water mark indicators for delineating arid streams in the southwestern United States.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center, Honover, NH.
Liu, X., Xia, J., Kuhn, M., Wright, G., and Arnold, L. (2013). “Assessment of spatial and temporal variations of high water mark indicators.” Ocean Coastal Manage., 85(A), 77–89.
Maloney, F. E. (1978). “The ordinary high water mark: Attempts at settling an unsettled boundary line.” Land Water Law Rev., 13(2), 465–499.
Matthews, O. P., and St. Germain, D. (2007). “Boundaries and transboundary water conflicts.” J. Water Resour. Plann. Manage., 386–396.
McCandless, T. L. (2003). “Maryland stream survey: Bankfull discharge and channel characteristics of streams in the coastal plain hydrologic region.” U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Annapolis, MD.
Mersel, M. K. (2013a). “A review of ordinary high water mark research in the western U.S. and future studies.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center, Hanover, NH.
Mersel, M. K. (2013b). “The ordinary high water mark: Concepts, research, and applications.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center, Hanover, NH.
Mersel, M. K., Lefebvre, L. E., and Lichvar, R. W. (2014a). “A review of land and stream classifications in support of developing a national ordinary high water mark (OHWM) classification.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center, Hanover, NH.
Mersel, M. K., and Lichvar, R. W. (2014). “A guide to ordinary high water mark (OHWM) delineation for non-perennial streams in the western mountains, valleys, and coast region of the United States.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center, Hanover, NH.
Mersel, M. K., Lichvar, R. W., Gillrich, J. J., and Lefebvre, L. E. (2014c). “Occurrence and distribution of ordinary high water mark (OHWM) indicators in non-perennial streams in the western mountains, valleys, and coast region of the United States.” U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center, Hanover, NH.
Metcalf, C. K., Wilkerson, S. D., and Harman, W. A. (2009). “Bankfull regional curves for north and northwest Florida streams.” J. Am. Water Resour. Assoc., 45(5), 1260–1272.
Modrick, T. M., and Georgakakos, K. P. (2014). “Regional bankfull geometry relationships for southern California mountain streams and hydrologic applications.” Geomorphology, 221, 242–260.
Mulvihill, B. C. I., Filopowicz, A., Coleman, A., and Baldigo, B. P. (2007). “Regionalized equations for bankfull discharge and channel characteristics of streams in New York State—Hydrologic regions 1 and 2 in the Adirondack Region of northern New York.”, U.S. Geological Survey, Scientific Investigations, Reston, VA.
NDSE (North Dakota State Engineer). (2007). “Ordinary high water mark delineation guidelines.” Bismarck, ND.
NLCD (National Land Cover Dataset). (2016). “Data download and visualization services.” ⟨http://nationalmap.gov/viewer.html⟩ (Sep. 29, 2016).
Olson, P., and Stockdale, E. (2010). “Determining the ordinary high water mark on streams in Washington State.” Washington State Dept. of Ecology, Shorelands and Environmental Assistance Program, Lacey, WA.
Powell, R. O., et al. (2004). “Guidelines for surveying bankfull channel geometry and developing regional hydraulic-geometry relations for streams of New York State.” U.S. Dept. of Interior Geological Survey, Troy, NY.
Rao, A. R. (2006). “Flood frequency relationships for Indiana.” Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN.
Robinson, B. A. (2013). “Regional bankfull-channel dimensions of non-urban wadeable streams in Indiana.”, U.S. Geological Survey, Scientific Investigations, Reston, VA.
SAS version 9.4 [Computer software]. SAS Institute, Cary, NC.
Searson, D. P. (2015). “GPTIPS 2: An open-source software platform for symbolic data mining.” Handbook of genetic programming applications, Springer, New York.
TxDOT (Texas Dept. of Transportation). (2015). “Hydraulic design manual.” Austin, TX.
USACE (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers). (2001). “Final summary report: Guidelines for jurisdictional determinations for waters of the United States in the Arid Southwest.” South Pacific Division, San Francisco.
USACE (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers). (2012a). “Field identification of ordinary high water mark in relationship to the field identification of bankfull stage for the Galveston District’s tiered stream condition assessment standard operating procedure.” Galveston, TX.
USACE (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers). (2012b). “Nationwide permit 13: Bank stabilization.” Washington, DC.
USGS (U.S. Geological Survey). (2006). “Estimated percentage of impervious surface in Indiana in 2006, derived from the 2006 National Land Cover Database (United States Geological Survey, 30-meter TIFF image).” Bloomington, IN.
Wilkerson, J., and Merwade, V. (2010a). “Determination of unit hydrograph parameters for Indiana watersheds.” Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN.
Wilkerson, J., and Merwade, V. (2010b). “Incorporating surface storage and slope to estimate Clark unit hydrographs for ungauged Indiana watersheds.” J. Hydrol. Eng., 918–930.
Williams, G. P. (1978). “Bank-full discharge of rivers.” Water Resour. Res., 14(6), 1141–1154.
Young, C. B., McEnroe, B. M., Gamarra, R., Luo, Y., and Lurtz, M. (2014). “Estimating the discharge for ordinary high water levels in Kansas.”, Kansas Dept. of Transportation, Topeka, KS.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Volume 143 • Issue 5 • May 2017
Copyright
©2016 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Apr 7, 2016
Accepted: Sep 19, 2016
Published online: Nov 29, 2016
Discussion open until: Apr 29, 2017
Published in print: May 1, 2017
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.