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Geographic Information Systems: Overview of the Sixes River Watershed, Oregon
Kailey Clarno and Taylor Albertson
Earth Science 341: Fundamentals of GIS
Western Oregon University
ANNUAL PRECIPITATION
DIGITAL ORTHOPHOTO QUADRANGLES
SOIL DESCRIPTION
The Sixes River Watershed is located
in southwestern Oregon within Curry
and Coos counties. Its western
boundary lies along the Pacific Ocean,
and is the point where the Sixes River
runs into. Due to its close proximity to
the ocean, the Sixes River Watershed
is located in the temperate rainforest of
the Pacific Northwest.
PHYSIOGRAPHY
Since the Sixes River Watershed can
receive upwards of 160 inches of rain
during any given year, the range of
plant species within its boundary is
very diverse. Coniferous forests
composed of Douglas Firs, Port Orford
Cedars, Tanoak, and Madrone cover
most of the landscape. Elevations
range from sea level to slightly over
1,000 meters. The southern and
northern regions of the watershed
feature the mountain ranges which are
divided by the Sixes River running
through the middle.
.
GENERAL GEOLOGY
Within the Sixes River Watershed, the
predominant bedrock types are
sandstone and mudstone. The
northern and southern regions appear
to be divided by the Sixes River.
Figure 1: Annual precipitation (inches). Most precipitation
occurred in the mid-southern region of the watershed.
DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL
Figure 4: A mosaic of the DEMs was created and clipped to the
watershed boundary. Streams converge in lower regions and
empty into the Pacific Ocean.
STREAMS
Figure 3: A mosaic of DOQ quads was created and clipped to the
watershed boundary.
DIGITAL RASTER GRAPHIC QUADRANTS
GEOLOGY
Figure 5: A mosaic of 7.5 minute DRGs labeled with the
names of each quad.
Figure 6: Shows the bedrock types within the watershed. Like
the soils, there are obvious differences between the northern
and southern regions of the watershed.
VEGETATION
WATERSHED ANALYSIS
Watershed Measurements
Elevation Data Analysis
Minimum Watershed Elevation
(feet)
Maximum Watershed
Elevation (feet)
Minimum Slope (decimal
degrees)
Maximum Slope (decimal
degrees)
REFERENCES
http://spatialdata.oregonexplorer.info/GPT9/catalog/main/home.page
Wetlands, DOQs
http://libweb.uoregon.edu/map/map_section/search.html
DRGs, DEMs
http://www.blm.gov/or/gis/data.php
Roads
http://soildatamart.nrcs.usda.gov/
Soil
http://www.oregon.gov/DAS/EISPD/GEO/alphalist.shtml#R
Vegetation
http://prism.oregonstate.edu/
Precipitation
Figure 2: Soils found within the watershed. There are
obvious differences in soil type between the northern and
southern areas of the watershed.
0.98
3,293.92
0
76.75
Chart 1: (Above) Using the
Spatial Analyst toolbar in
ArcMap, data analyses of the
elevation within the Sixes
Watershed were calculated.
Chart 2: (Right) Using ArcMap,
measurements of the Sixes
Watershed were taken.
Figure 7: Streams within the watershed. The major river running
through the watershed includes the Sixes River and all of its
tributaries.
Total Drainage Area (square meters)
Total Drainage Area (square
kilometers)
347,809,824.48
347.81
Total Length of Watershed (kilometers)
33.33
Total Width of Watershed (kilometers)
18.33
Watershed Length/Width Ratio
Total number of Subbasins in
Watershed
Average Area of Subbasins in
Watershed (square meters)
1.818
Total Number of Stream Segments or
Tributaries in Watershed
Total Number of First Oder Stream
Segments
14
24,843,558.89
2,851
1,440
Total Number of Second Order Stream
Segments
615
First Order Stream Frequency (Total
Number/Drainage Area)
4.14
Figure 8: Vegetation types within the watershed. There are
obvious differences in the types of vegetation found on the
northern and southern portions of the watershed.