Project Number: 6408-13000-022-02
Project Type: Specific Cooperative Agreement

Start Date: Jun 01, 2011
End Date: May 31, 2016

Objective:
Objective 1: Develop, adapt and evaluate, and integrate non-invasive geophysical methods and complementary modeling efforts, in support of a comprehensive earthen dam interrogation and monitoring program (2.4.1). Objective 2: Develop acoustic hardware and measurement techniques for non-experts to improve the monitoring of suspended and bedload sediment transport. (2.2.1, 2.2.2) Objective 3: Develop non-invasive acoustic/seismic techniques and orthogonal geophysical methods to characterize surface and sub-surface soils as well as visualize and monitor subsurface pedological features affecting erosion processes (2.1.1, 2.1.3).

Approach:
This project concerns the development, application, and use of geo-physically based acoustic/seismic technology in agricultural watersheds in particular of how these techniques can be used in predicting bank stability, dam and levee failure, and to assess the effectiveness of remedial measures and the development of early warning systems of impending catastrophic events that threatens life and property in agricultural watersheds. Specifically, the first objective concerns the development, adaptation, and evaluation of non-invasive acoustics/seismic techniques to monitor the integrity on a momentary and continuous basis of dam and levee structures in agricultural watersheds (NP211 Action Plan, 2.4). The second objective relates to the development of hardware and techniques to detect, improve, automate the measurements of suspended and bed-load sediment movement in the stream system of agricultural watersheds (2.2). The third objective relates to the developments of techniques that allow the visualization of pedological soil profile features and characteristics that affect soil erosion on upland areas such as the presence of hardpans, and water transport limiting profile features using the non-invasive acoustic/seismic technology (2.1)