A sediment budget for a small semiarid watershed in southeastern Arizona, USA

A sediment budget was developed for a 43.7 ha and a nested 3.7 ha semiarid, shrub dominated watershed based on hydrologic, geomorphic, erosion, and sediment data collected from 1963 through 2006 on the USDA-ARS Walnut Gulch Experimental Watershed in the southwestern US. Sediment budgets based on such extensive and intensive field campaigns over several decades are rare. The sediment budget was balanced with a high degree of confidence because the study watershed is controlled by an earth dam at the outlet. Although the channel network is well developed and incising in the steeper reaches of the watershed, hillslopes are the dominant source of sediment, contributing 85% of the overall total sediment yield. Erosion and sediment redistribution were driven by highly variable rainfall and runoff during July, August, and September. Sediment transfers are influenced by channel abstractions and the presence of the outlet dam, which created conditions for deposition in the pond approach reach. Although earth dams are ubiquitous throughout the southwestern US, and they can provide a measure of outlet sediment yield, these outlet measurements may be insufficient to interpret temporal and spatial variability in watershed sediment dynamics. Identification of dominant processes and sediment sources is critical for determining management actions that will improve rangeland conditions.

► We computed a sediment budget for a semiarid watershed.
► Hillslopes are the dominant sediment source.
► Sediment transfers are influenced by variability in rainfall and runoff.
► Outlet measurements are a poor indicator of internal watershed sediment dynamics.