Journal of Hydrology 414–415 (2012) 231–243

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Journal of Hydrology
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jhydrol

Rehabilitation of a debris-flow prone mountain stream in southwestern

China – Strategies, effects and implications
Guo-an Yu a, He Qing Huang a,⇑, Zhaoyin Wang b, Gary Brierley c, Kang Zhang b
a
Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 11A Datun Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, China
b
State Key Laboratory of Hydroscience and Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
c
School of Environment, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019 Auckland, New Zealand

a r t i c l e i n f o s u m m a r y

Article history: Rehabilitation of Shengou Creek, a small, steep mountain stream in southwestern China that is prone to
Received 3 September 2010 debris flows, started more than 30 years ago through an integrated program of engineering applications
Received in revised form 11 August 2011 (check dams and guiding dikes), biological measures (reforestation), and social measures (reducing
Accepted 29 October 2011
human disturbance). Small and medium-sized check dams and guiding dikes were constructed on key
Available online 7 November 2011
This manuscript was handled by Laurent
upper and middle sections of the creek to stabilize hillslopes and channel bed. Meanwhile, Leucaena
Charlet, Editor-in-Chief, with the assistance leucocephala, a drought-tolerant, fast-growing, and highly adaptive plant species, was introduced to
of Prosun Bhattacharya, Associate Editor promote vegetation recovery in the watershed. The collective community structure of tree, shrub, and
herb assemblages in the artificial L. leucocephala forest, which developed after 7 years, enhanced soil
Keywords: structure and drastically reduced soil erosion on hillslopes. Cultivation of steep land was strictly con-
Steep headwater stream trolled in the basin, and some inhabitants were encouraged to move from upstream areas to downstream
Rehabilitation towns to reduce disturbance. These integrated measures reduced sediment supply from both hillslopes
Riparian vegetation and upstream channels, preventing sediment-related hazards. The development of natural streambed
Streambed structure resistance structures (mainly step-pool systems) and luxuriant riparian vegetation aided channel stabil-
Stream ecology ity, diversity of stream habitat, and ecological maintenance in the creek. These findings are compared
with Jiangjia and Xiaobaini Ravines, two adjacent non-rehabilitated debris-flow streams which have
climate and geomorphologic conditions similar to Shengou Creek. Habitat diversity indices, taxa richness,
biodiversity, and bio-community indices are much higher in Shengou Creek relative to Jiangjia and
Xiaobaini Ravines, attesting to the effectiveness of rehabilitation measures.
Ó 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
The physical and ecological importance of mountain streams
upon entire river basins has been recognized for centuries (Wohl,
2006). Although mountain streams drain an estimated 20% of glo-
bal land area, they contribute nearly 50% of the sediments that riv-
ers carry to oceans (Milliman and Syvitski, 1992). Regional patterns
of climate, geology, and topography impose important constraints
on the physical and biological processes that regulate river struc-
ture and function (Montgomery and Bolton, 2003). In many set-
tings land use changes such as deforestation, overgrazing and
mining activities have had significant long-term impacts on sedi-
ment flux and geo-ecological attributes of river systems (e.g.,
Gubernick et al., 1998; Kasai et al., 2005; Marden et al., 2005). Re-
sponses are especially pronounced in upland regions, where sensi-
tivity to change is enhanced by strong coupling between hillslopes
⇑ Corresponding author. Tel.: +86 10 64888992.
E-mail address: huanghq@igsnrr.ac.cn (H.Q. Huang).
and river channels (Madej, 1995; Harvey, 2002; Liébault et al.,
2005; Fryirs et al., 2007). Sediments yielded by landslides, debris
flows and gullying processes are rapidly transferred from these
steepland catchments as sediment pulses, waves or slugs
(Le Bourdiec, 1972; Nicholas et al., 1995; De Rose et al., 1998;
James, 2010). Sediment-related hazards pose considerable risk to
downstream infrastructure, communities, environments, and eco-
logical systems. For example, hydraulic gold mining induced rapid
sediment production and resulted in devastating channel aggrada-
tion along several rivers in California in the late 19th century
(Gilbert, 1917; Kelley, 1954; James, 1999, 2010). Reworking of
these historical legacy deposits induces phases of bed aggradation
and degradation (Lisle, 1982; Schmidt and Graf, 1990; Lisle and
Church, 2002; Kondolf et al., 2002; Madej et al., 2009).
Awareness of the off-site impacts of human disturbance in
mountainous areas has brought about efforts to reduce sediment
hazards in steepland settings for many centuries, such as Japan
(Diamond, 2005) and French Alps (Bravard et al., 1999). Nowadays
rehabilitation efforts increasingly strive to improve stream health
by endeavoring to return degraded stream ecosystems to a close

0022-1694/$ - see front matter Ó 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.jhydrol.2011.10.036
232 G.A. Yu et al. / Journal of Hydrology 414–415 (2012) 231–243
approximation of their remaining natural potential, or partial
return to a pre-disturbance structure and function (NRC, 1992;
Shields et al., 1997, 2003). Typically these efforts assist the estab-
lishment of improved hydrologic, geomorphologic, and ecological
processes in degraded watershed systems and replace lost, dam-
aged, or compromised elements of the natural systems (Smith
and Prestegaard, 2005; Wohl et al., 2005).
Rehabilitation objectives vary broadly from small-scale projects
targeting populations of individual species to entire watershed
recovery projects that may be ongoing for several decades (Brooks
and Lake, 2007; Brierley and Fryirs, 2008). Any river rehabilitation
design must first identify the causes and consequences of stream
channel impairment. The design must not only address the causes
of instability, but also the potential of rivers to balance the objec-
tives, desires, and benefits of the proposed rehabilitation (Rosgen,
2006). An ideal ecologically successful rehabilitation creates
hydrologic, geomorphologic, and ecological conditions that allow
the targeted river to be self-sustainable in its new context, recog-
nizing implicitly the inherent variability and uncertainty of river
systems (Wissmar and Bisson, 2003; Palmer et al., 2005; Brierley
and Fryirs, 2005, 2009; Darby and Sear, 2008).
Reforestation of eroded terrain using exotic tree species has
proved to be an effective rehabilitation strategy in landslide-prone
soft-rock steeplands. In New Zealand, erosion and sediment pro-
duction begin to decline 8 to 10 years after exotic tree species
planting (Phillips et al., 1990; Marden and Rowan, 1993; Marden
et al., 2005), resulting in a 62% decrease in sediment production
from some upland gullies (Gomez et al., 2003). A similar trend
was observed in southern French Prealps (Liébault et al., 2005). De-
creased sediment production following reforestation normally in-
duces channel narrowing and incision and careful management
of sediment flux at a catchment scale is required to counteract po-
tential adjustments to channel morphology.
In recent decades, the morphological condition, stability and
ecological conditions of step-pool systems in steep mountain
streams has received significant attention (e.g., Grant et al., 1990;
Montgomery and Buffington, 1997; Chin, 1999, 2003; Wohl and
Thompson, 2000; Chin and Wohl, 2005; Church and Zimmermann,
2007; Curran, 2007; Chin et al., 2009; Comiti et al., 2009a; Wang
et al., 2009). Disturbance-induced (anthropogenic, climatic or geo-
logic) river modification often transforms streams from heteroge-
neous to homogeneous systems, reducing habitat diversity,
depressing ecology, and even causing sediment hazards. In some
instances, artificial step-pool systems and engineering measures
may be needed to rehabilitate steep mountain streams (e.g., Yu
et al., 2010). Approaches to rehabilitation of mountain streams
vary in different parts of the world. For example, channel stabiliza-
tion has been targeted in the European Alps (Lenzi, 2002; Comiti
et al., 2009b) and in Taiwan. Stream ecology improvement has
been addressed in the United States and Germany (e.g., Shields
et al., 1997, 2003; Morris and Moses, 1998). In Japan, modifications
to the construction and operation of Sabo (check) dams increas-
ingly emphasize concerns for the management of riparian forests,
instream habitats, and ecosystem functionality (Nakamura et al.,
2006; Marutani et al., 2008). There are several instances of compre-
hensive rehabilitation of mountain streams in the United States,
and a typical example is the rehabilitation of Fossil Creek in
Arizona (http://www.mpcer.nau.edu/riverreborn/).
This study presents strategies, processes, and effects of rehabil-
itation for Shengou Creek, a small, steep debris-flow prone moun-
tain stream in southwestern China. Progressive deterioration of
river conditions, markedly in the mid 20th century due to ever-
increasing human disturbances (mining, deforestation and hill-
slope farming), prompted the application of ongoing, integrated
approaches to rehabilitation in the late 1970s. System responses
to these rehabilitation measures are contrasted with two adjacent
non-rehabilitated debris-flow streams, Jiangjia and Xiaobaini
Ravines, which have similar climatic and geomorphic conditions.
2. Study area and methods
2.1. Study area
Shengou Creek, Jiangjia Ravine, and Xiaobaini Ravine are the
tributaries of Xiaojiang River, which is a tributary of Jinsha River
(the upper Yangtze River) with a length of 138.2 km and a basin
area of 3043.5 km2. All these rivers are located in the north of
the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau (Fig. 1).
The Xiaojiang River basin has a semiarid-subtropical climate. In
the valley, the annual average precipitation ranges within
694–1400 mm, while the annual evaportranspiration reaches c.
2000 mm. The annual average temperature varies around 20 °C
within a range from 2 to 40 °C in relation to the variation in ele-
vation (He et al., 2003b). The southwestern monsoon brings very
distinct wet and dry seasons, with about 88% of the precipitation
falling from April to October, and 50% from June to August (often
as rainstorms). These climatic conditions hinder the growth and
development of vegetation in the area.
The history of copper mining in the Xiaojiang River basin
extends over more than 3000 years. Large scale copper mining
started about 300 years ago in the Qing Dynasty (Yang, 1992).
The original bushy forest was gradually destroyed by timber har-
vesting for primitive copper mining and smelting. Deforestation
was especially severe since the late 1950s, in part due to the deci-
sion of the National Five-year Plan of China (1953–1957) to build
Dongchuan, the largest city in the basin, as a national key copper
production base. This dramatically increased copper producing
capacity, but also put much greater pressure on the local environ-
ment. The development was accompanied by land use changes.
Large areas of forest and grassland were transformed into farmland
in efforts to satisfy the ever-increasing demand for food and fire-
wood associated with population growth. Gully erosion became a
pervasive feature as vegetation cover was reduced from about
30% in the 1950s to only 13.3% (forest cover just 6.7%) in the
1980s (Chen, 1996). Deforestation and other human interventions
seriously degraded local ecosystems (Lv, 2000).
Geologically, the Xiaojiang River basin is located in Xiaojiang
fracture zone, an old and long active structural fault zone com-
posed of 19 secondary faults (Li, 1959; Du et al., 1987). The basin
is dominated by steep, tectonically active folded mountain ranges
that are prone to earthquakes and mountain hazards. The elevation
difference in the basin is over 3000 m, and over 60% of the basin
has slopes of greater than 25°.
There are 107 debris flow gullies (ravines) in the basin. Debris
flow disasters occur in many gullies during rainy seasons, trans-
porting considerable volumes of sediments downstream. The esti-
mated annual sediment yield of the basin is greater than 42 million
tons, of which 18.6 million tons was transported into Jinsha River,
while 23.4 million tons was deposited along the river channels
(JICA, 2006). This has resulted in continuous valley floor aggrada-
tion and channel widening. Frequent sediment-related hazards
are not only devastating to residents and economies, but also im-
pact severely upon stream ecosystems. As a result, water and soil
loss control and rehabilitation of degraded stream ecology are
badly needed in the Xiaojiang River basin.
Shengou Creek originates from Great Guniuzhai Mountain
(4017 m a.l.s.), the highest mountain on the right bank of Xiaojiang
River. This 9.1 km long creek drains a basin area of 33 km2, joining
Xiaojiang River at an elevation of 1160 m. The average main chan-
nel slope of Shengou Creek is c. 19%, ranging within 7–65% (see
Fig. 1). Prior to the 1980s vegetation cover was poor, and debris
 G.A. Yu et al. / Journal of Hydrology 414–415 (2012) 231–243 233

103º00' Shengou Creek

Jiangjia Ravine
# 26º30'
Xiaobaini Ravine

R
# #

jiang
#

#
#
#
# Main large-scale
copper mine
#

Jinsha R.
# #

Xiao
#

#
#

# #
#
#
#
#
#
#

N #
#
#
#

#
#

500 0 500km

Yinmin

Lumao
0 2 4km
N
N

Dongchuan
.
n

gR
hua
ngc 0 1km
Do

lon
R.

Xiniutang
ai

Wu
b
Da
N 26º00'
0 2km

Awang
30km
N

20

Gongshan Majia
Kuai R.
10

Sediment deposits
2800 ni
ai ou
Elevation (m)

sampling site b
Dongchuan ia
o
e ng jia
2200 X
Sh a ng
J i
Red soil

1600

1000
0 3000 6000 9000 12000

Distance to upstream (m)

Fig. 1. The sketch map of the Xiaojiang River basin and three tributaries in southwestern China (r Shengou Creek, s Jiangjia Ravine, and t Xiaobaini Ravine) and the
longitudinal profiles of the main channel of the three mountain streams.

flows, landslides and gully erosion transported considerable vol- and associated ecological values. This is similar to the conditions of
umes of sediments to the valley floor, seriously degrading the eco- Shengou Creek 30 years ago, prior to the implementation of stream
logical conditions of the creek. rehabilitation measures. The basic features of the three streams are
The downtown area of Dongchuan is located on the margins of summarized in Table 1.
an alluvial fan created by debris flows from Shengou Creek and the Native plants are now very scattered in the Xiaojiang River ba-
adjacent Shiyang Ravine. The risk of debris flow outburst from sin. The dominant trees include: Pinus yunnanensis and Pinus
these two creeks still remains to a degree today. Shengou armandi. Dominant shrubs include: Dodonaea viscose, Coriaria sini-
Creek is an important water supply source for Dongchuan, with ca, and Sophora viciifolia. Dominant herbs include: Eremopogon del-
0.1 m3/s of flow diverted as drinking water. Landslide or debris avayi, Themeda triandra var. japonica, Eleusine indica, Eulaliopsis
flow deposits could dam the creek, impacting upon the water binata, and Ploygonum maackinus (Cui et al., 2005; Yang et al.,
quality and water supply. 2009).
Jiangjia Ravine, a right-bank tributary of Xiaojiang River, is The lithology in Shengou Creek is generally composed of por-
17 km far from Shengou Creek (Fig. 1). Each year there are around phyritic granodiorite and limestone; and generally sandy slate,
10–20 debris flow events occurring in the ravine (historical records limestone and basalt in Jiangjia Ravine; and argillite and limestone
from 1961 to 2004 indicate 2–28 events per year) (Kang et al., in Xiaobaini Ravine. Fig. 3 shows the similarity of size distributions
2004). Intensive gully erosion occurs in the upper reaches, while of bed materials in the downstream reaches of Shengou Creek and
the streambed of the middle and lower reaches continues to ag- Jiangjia and Xiaobaini Ravines, consisting mainly of fine and coarse
grade as a result of excess sediment supply. A similar situation is sand, gravel, cobbles, and boulders (Luo and Zhu, 1987).
also occurring along Xiaobaini Ravine, which flows into Xiaojiang
River from the opposite side (left side), about 8 km far from Shen- 2.2. Methods
gou Creek. Fig. 2 shows the streambed morphology of (a) Jiangjia
and (b) Xiaobani Ravines in non-flood seasons. No streambed Benthic macroinvertebrates are commonly used as an indicator
structures can be identified, limiting the physical habitat diversity species for rapid evaluation of stream ecology (Smith et al., 1999;
234 G.A. Yu et al. / Journal of Hydrology 414–415 (2012) 231–243

Fig. 2. Photographs showing study streams: (a) Jiangjia Ravine and (b) Xiaobaini Ravine, showing no development of streambed structures and the uniform stream
morphology along the two streams (the channel-bed width is about 10 m in each photo for the two streams).

Table 1
Basic features of Shengou Creek, Jiangjia Ravine and Xiaobaini Ravine.

Shengou Creek Jiangjia Ravine Xiaobaini Ravine

Main channel length (km) 9.1 12.3 6.8
Basin area (km2) 33.0 45.1 12. 5
Elevation range (m) 4017–1160 3269–1040 2980–1371
Lithology Porphyritic granodiorite, limestone Sandy slate, limestone, basalt Argillite, limestone
Annual precipitation (mm) c. 800 c. 700 c. 700
Main vegetation type Pinus yunnanensis, Agave sisalana, Pinus yunnanensis, Pinus armandi, Eucalyptus spp., Eucalyptus spp., Pinus yunnanensis,
Eleusine indica, Eulaliopsis binata, Coriaria sinica, Agave sisalana, Eleusine indica, Agave sisalana, Eleusine indica,
Ploygonum maackinus Eulaliopsis binata Eulaliopsis binata
Debris flow occurrence c. 1–5 times/year before 1980s 10–20 times/year 5–15 times/year
frequency

100 Macroinvertebrate samples were taken in the middle reaches of

Grain size distribution (%)

Shengou Creek, Xiaobaini and Jiangjia Ravines in May 2005 and

80 Shengou Creek December 2007, respectively. More than three samples were taken
Jiangjia Ravine for different substrates, shallow and deep waters, and/or high and
60 Xiaobaini Ravine low velocities at each site, with each sample covering an area
greater than 0.4 m2. The samples were then combined to form a
40 summary of the site. For streams with low population density,
the total sampling area was larger than 10 m2. Both kicknet and
20
surber samplers were used, and benthic invertebrates were identi-
0 fied to species level under 90–400 times microscope in most
0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1000 instances.
D (mm) Different physical conditions support different bio-communities
and diversified physical conditions may support diversified bio-
Fig. 3. Size distribution of sediment deposits in the downstream reaches of
communities. A habitat diversity index, HD, was applied to capture
Shengou Creek, Jiangjia Ravine and Xiaobaini Ravine (sample locations are shown in
Fig. 1). this diversity:
X
HD ¼ N h N v ai ð1Þ
i

Karr, 1999). Rapid benthic bio-assessment provides an indication
of the overall biological condition of a stream as it reflects the ben-
thic community’s capacity to respond to integrated environmental
effects. Taxa richness, S, or the number of species, is the most
important characteristic of biodiversity, providing a clear ecologi-
cal assessment of habitat conditions. The composition and biodi-
versity of macroinvertebrates collected in each substrate were
evaluated using three biological indices: (1) Taxa richness S, num-
ber of taxa in samples, (2) Density, total number of benthic organ-
isms per unit area, and (3) Modified Shannon–Wiener diversity
P
index B ¼  ln N Si¼1 nNi lnðnNi Þ (Wang et al., 2009), reflecting taxa
richness and evenness of number distribution of species, providing
information about the total abundance of the bio-community,
where S = number of species (richness), N = total number of indi-
vidual animals of invertebrates, and ni = number of individual ani-
mals of the i-th species, respectively (Krebs, 1978).
where Nh and Rv = numbers for flow depth diversity and velocity
diversity, and a = substrate diversity coefficient, which varies for
different substrates. Detailed definition and determination of Nh,
Nv, and a are given by Wang et al. (2009).
Vegetation development was investigated during 2006–2008
using sample plots. The size of each plot is 10 m  10 m. For artifi-
cial forests with tree ages of 4, 10, and 20 years, 3–5 plots were
chosen in the middle of each artificial forest so as to represent
the developmental condition of the forest and to reduce error
due to the relatively small size of the plots. Species diversity and
community structures of tree layers, secondary shrub layers, and
herbaceous layers were analyzed to derive indices of species rich-
ness, coverage, and importance value.
Depth-integrated suspended sediment concentration was mea-
sured in the field in the lower reaches of Shengou Creek, Jiangjia
and Xiaobaini Ravines (3–5 samples at each site and 600 ml for
 G.A. Yu et al. / Journal of Hydrology 414–415 (2012) 231–243
each sample). The samples were collected near the peak of the
flood observed. Bed load transport was measured using a double-
box sampler (Yu et al., 2009), positioned in a relatively straight
section of the lower reach for each river, thereby capturing the
incoming sediment from the upper reach. The outer box was bur-
ied under the stream bed with its top edges even with the local bed
surface. The size of the inner box is 0.5 m  0.2 m  0.2 m, and 3–
5 samples were collected under flooding and non-flooding condi-
tions, respectively. Velocity was measured using a current meter
which consists of a Pitot tube as the probe and an electronic pres-
sure meter showing pressure difference. The measurement range
of the current meter is 0.1–10 m/s and the relative error is less than
8%. The size distribution of sediments was determined in three
ways: clay, silt, and fine sand were determined in the laboratory;
silt, sand, and gravel were analyzed by sieving; and gravel, cobbles
and boulders were measured individually within a 1  1 m2 frame
with scales. The ratios of clay and silt to sand and gravel to cobbles
and boulders were measured by taking samples from a layer of
channel bed material with a thickness of about 10 cm.
Bed roughness of streambed structures was measured using a
parameter, SP, which is defined by Wang et al. (2009) as the ratio
of the curve length to the straight length of channel thalweg minus
one. For a flat bed with fine sediments, SP = 0; for beds with sand
dunes or individual step-pools, SP is smaller than 0.1; and for a
well-developed step-pool system, SP is larger than 0.1 and may
reach 0.3 or even higher. For determining SP a special instrument
was designed. It is composed of thirty measuring rods spaced
5 cm apart placing on a 150 cm long horizontal aluminum steel
frame, with the upper rod ends describing the channel-bed profile
in front of a screen. The thalweg of a stream is measured by moving
the frame along the stream and taking a picture of the screen each
time when the frame is moved. Based on the measurements, SP is
then calculated by
qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
Pm
i¼1 ðRiþ1  Ri Þ2 þ 52
SP ¼ qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi  1
½5ðm  1Þ2 þ ðRm  R1 Þ2
in which Ri = the reading of upper end of measuring rods on the
screen (cm), R1 = the reading of the most upstream measuring rod,
and m = the total number of the readings, respectively.
3. Response of Shengou Creek to rehabilitation measures
3.1. Rehabilitation strategies and historical processes
Rehabilitation of Shengou Creek integrated a range of engineer-
ing, biological, and social measures. In areas subjected to serious
gully erosion, small and medium-sized check dams, guiding dikes,
and reforestation of fast-growing and effective erosion-controlling
species were applied to control erosion and sediment transport,
and to stabilize hillslopes and stream channels. In areas subjected
to moderate soil erosion, hillslopes were modified by terracing
fields and cultivation of plant species for soil and water conserva-
tion. In contrast, areas with gentle soil erosion were managed by
closing hills to allow ecosystems to self-regenerate.
In the initial stage of rehabilitation for the creek, priority was
placed upon engineering measures to control landslides, debris
flows and flooding hazards and to stabilize channels. The construc-
tion of check dams started in the late 1970s, and was pronounced
in the 1980s and 1990s. Eight medium-sized comb-type check
dams (dam height is about 5 m, similar to Sabo dams in Japan)
were constructed on key sections of the upstream channels with
steep slope (>10%) to interrupt debris flows and to raise the erosion
base (see Fig. 4a and b). To conserve the heterogeneity of geomor-
phic structure and hydrologic and ecological continuity of the
235
creek as much as possible, the construction of medium-sized check
dams was restricted, and no large check-dams were constructed.
However, more than 100 very small check dams (similar to Chisan
dams in Japan, with dam height of about 1 m and spacing of about
20 m) were constructed in mid-catchment reaches (slopes of 5–
10%) to increase bed friction along the channels and to stabilize
the streambed. In addition, hundreds of meters of guiding dikes
were constructed along key reaches that are prone to debris flow
hazards (Fig. 4c and d). This package of dams and guiding dikes
has successfully prevented the occurrence of sediment disasters
in the valley.
Following the initial application of engineering measures (check
dams and guiding dikes), reforestation became a critical consider-
ation in the rehabilitation of Shengou Creek. Given the steep slope,
very loose and cracked rock, and irregular precipitation in the
Xiaojiang River basin, soil erosion on the hillslopes cannot be effec-
tively controlled until vegetation coverage reaches 70–80%. Hence,
L. leucocephala was introduced to enhance the development of
riparian vegetation along the creek (Fig. 5a and b). L. leucocephala
is a deep-rooted species of small Mimosoid tree that is native to
southern Mexico and northern Central America. This drought-
tolerant plant can survive in dry areas with barren soils because
of its nitrogen fixation ability (Brewbaker et al., 1985; Cronk and
Fuller, 1995). L. leucocephala in Dongchuan is an adapted species
typical to the local region and was introduced to the Xiaojiang Riv-
er basin more than 30 years ago. In the mid 1980s, it was intro-
duced to Shengou Creek.
Human disturbances, such as cultivation of steep hillslopes,
have been strictly controlled in the Shengou Creek basin since
the late 1990s, especially following the devastating floods occurred
in the Yangtze River basin in 1998. On gentle slopes, terrace fields
were maintained for local farmers’ basic living requirements. By
doing this, retention of a protective cover of vegetation limits soil
erosion considerably (Fig. 5c).
In order to prevent point and diffuse pollutants from entering
ð2Þ the creek so as to enhance water quality, the local government
moved all restaurants out from the basin in 2006, and encouraged
over 20 families (more than 100 people) to migrate from the upper
and middle reaches of the stream to Dongchuan in 2006–2007.
3.2. Vegetation recovery
Continuous field investigations have been undertaken along
Shengou Creek and Jiangjia and Xiaobaini Ravines during 2005–
2010. The application of rehabilitation measures over the past
30 years has stabilised the stream channel and the slope of Shen-
gou Creek. Riparian vegetation has been well-established, sharply
reducing soil erosion and sediment transport. The basic character-
istics of the tree layer community structure for tree ages of 4, 10,
and 20 years of L. leucocephala introduced into the Shengou Creek
basin are summarized in Table 2. In the basin, L. leucocephala grows
fast and normally have a tree height over 5 m and coverage of 30%
when it is just 4 years old. After 10 years a community structure of
tree, shrub, and herb layers formed in the basin, with coverage of
80%. Field investigations also showed that L. leucocephala forests
gained well development with a high canopy density after 7 years
stand age. Following the increase of forest stand age and coverage,
soil erosion from the hillslopes was drastically reduced. In addi-
tion, it is noticeable that herb and litter layers enhanced soil struc-
ture and raised the infiltration capacity for rainwater, thereby
slowing the velocity of overland flow and reducing soil erosion.
Furthermore, it is observed the soil layer developed on the previ-
ously barren slopes accumulates humus, enhancing vegetation
growth while diminishing rates of soil erosion.
Although L. leucocephala forms dense thickets which crowd out
native vegetation (Kuo, 2003), and has been considered to be one of
236 G.A. Yu et al. / Journal of Hydrology 414–415 (2012) 231–243

Fig. 4. Photographs showing study streams: (a and b) Medium-sized comb-type check dams in the upper reach of Shengou Creek, where the channel width is about 3–5 m;
and (c and d) small channel-bed stabilizing dam sequence and guiding dikes constructed in a section along the middle reach, where channel width is about 5–15 m in order to
increase streambed friction and stabilize the bank slope (the photos were taken in early April 2010 when a serious drought with an 80-year-return period occurred in
southwestern China, and the stored water was a refuge source for aquatic animals).

(a) (b)

(c)

Fig. 5. Photographs showing Leucaena Leucocephala introduced along the middle and lower reaches of Shengou Creek (a and b) and the hill slopes where reclamation was
strictly controlled in the upstream reach of the creek (c).

the 100 worst invasive species (http://www.invasivespecies.net/ area of the Xiaojiang River basin because it grew faster than other
database), it has played an important role in aiding the recovery dominant plant species (such as Eucalyptus spp. and Pinus yunnan-
of the local environment and ecology. It has been observed that ensis), and had higher adaptive capacity to the local harsh, barren,
this plant has effectively controlled soil erosion in the plantation hot and dry environment and higher crown coverage (e.g., Yang
 G.A. Yu et al. / Journal of Hydrology 414–415 (2012) 231–243 237

Table 2
Basic features of the tree layer community structure for different tree ages of Leucaena leucocephala in the Shengou Creek basin (Yang et al., 2009).

Tree Tree layer Shrub layer Herb layer

age (a)
Average Average Coverage Plant density Average Count Count of Coverage Average Coverage Count of
height (m) diameter (cm) (%) (number/hm2) height (m) species (%) height (m) (%) species
4 5.5 1.9 30 3700 0 0 0 0 0.1 22 5
10 14 3.64 80 2200 1.5 10 2 4 0.5 88 8
20 16 4.5 70 6000 1.4 2 1 2 0.05 0.7 4

Table 3
Hydraulic data measured in the three streams during flood and non-flood seasons.

Stream Flood season

Annual sediment transport by debris Non-debris flows in Aug, 2009 Non-flood season
flow (104 ton)
Discharge (m3/s) Sediment transport Discharge (m3/s) Sediment transport
rate (kg/s) rate (kg/s)
Shengou Creek 0 in recent years 0.465/August 10 0.083/August 10 0.202/January 7, 2008 0
0.102/April 10, 2010 0
Jiangjia Ravine 573.7 (1965–2004), range from 57.2 to 0.328/August 13 23.03/August 13 0.207/January 2, 2008 1.16/January 2, 2008
1449.8 (Cui et al., 2006)
0.02/April 11, 2010 0/April 11, 2010
Xiaobaini Ravine 83.6 (Guo et al., 2000) 0.129/August 13 7.19/August 13 0.084/January 2, 2008 1.31/January 2, 2008
0.029/April 9, 2010 0.1/April 9, 2010

Fig. 6. Photographs showing study streams: (a and b) natural step-pool sequences developed in Shengou Creek as the result of rehabilitation efforts, by which a total of
around 5.5 km of channel reach develops step-pool sequences, and the channel width ranges from about 0.5 to 2 m; and (c and d) Luxuriant riparian vegetation developed
along Shengou Creek since the reforestation of Leucaena leucocephala and the development of natural step-pool systems which stabilize the channel and stream bank.

et al., 2009). As a consequence, it brought about superior erosion
control. Today, L. leucocephala is the main shrub, semi-shrub, or ar-
bor in the Shengou Creek basin, demonstrating excellent soil ero-
sion control and foliage production.
3.3. Development of streambed structures and hydraulic features
Effective controls upon soil erosion from both hillslopes and up-
stream channels have induced sediment-starved flows that have
scoured the channel bed of Shengou Creek. As a result, step-pool
systems have fully developed in high gradient reaches, as shown
in Fig. 6a and b. Riparian vegetation has developed well along
the channels, enhancing valley floor roughness and local aesthetics
(Fig. 6c and d). By 2005, the creek had been transformed from a
debris flow gully into a recreational area with beautiful step-pool
morphology and riparian forest, now becoming a forest park for lo-
cal inhabitants.
The bed (thalweg) profiles of Shengou Creek and Jiangjia and
Xiaobaini Ravines, measured using the specially designed instru-
ment, are shown in Fig. 7. The SP value of Shengou Creek is about
238 G.A. Yu et al. / Journal of Hydrology 414–415 (2012) 231–243

400 and Xiaobaini Ravines have no step-pool system or other effective

Relative elevation (cm)

350 streambed structures and so the roughness and flow resistance are
300 Shengou Creek
Shengou Creek very small. As a consequence, the channels of the two streams are
250 unstable and have high capacity for sediment transport, even
200 Xiaobaini Ravine
Fork Gully
though their climate and bed sediment composition are similar
150 to Shengou Creek. Due to excess sediment load, the streambeds
100 Jiangjia Ravine
of the lower reaches of Jiangjia and Xiaobaini Ravines continue to
Jiangjia Ravine
50 aggrade. Bed load motion (primarily gravel and sand) and sus-
0
pended load transport occur even in non-flood seasons. Between
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1957 and 2002 sediments scoured and transported from the up-
Distance (cm) stream gully were deposited in the middle and downstream chan-
nel of Jiangjia Ravine, elevating the downstream channel bed by
Fig. 7. The thalweg profiles of the downstream reaches of the three study streams. about 30 m (Fig. 8).
The hydraulic data measured in Shengou Creek and Jiangjia and
Xiaobaini Ravines during flood and non-flood seasons are com-
50 pared in Table 3. The sediment transport rate is very low in Shen-
1957-1985
Depth of aggradation

gou Creek in the flood season and zero in the non-flood season. No
/degradation (m)

30 1957-2002 debris flows have occurred in recent years. In contrast, bed load
motion is still intensive along both Jiangjia and Xiaobaini Ravines,
10 with high sediment transport rates in both flood and non-flood
seasons. Debris flows occur frequently, transporting considerable
-10 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 volumes of sediments downstream.

-30
Upstream distance (km) 3.4. Aquatic ecology
Fig. 8. Aggradation (+) and degradation () along Jiangjia Ravine in the respective
periods of 1957–1985 and 1957–2002 as a function of distance from the ravine The basic physical conditions of benthic macroinvertebrate
mouth (after He et al., 2003a). sampling sites are much more diverse along Shengou Creek than
along the other two ravines (Table 4). Biomass per unit area of
invertebrates in Shengou Creek is as high as 6.4–8.8 g/m2, which
0.2, much higher than those of Jiangjia and Xiaobaini Ravines (both is more than 800 times higher than that in Jiangjia Ravine, and
around 0.03). This is because step-pool systems and other stream- no macroinvertebrates were found in Xiaobaini Ravine (Table 5).
bed structures are far better developed along Shengou Creek, This reflects the presence of a step-pool system in the former
resulting in a much higher bed roughness. In contrast, Jiangjia stream and no step-pools or other streambed structures in the lat-

Table 4
Basic physical conditions of the sampling sites on the three streams.

Stream Sampling site T Cw gb (kg/s/m) Stream bed structure Bed Substrate Water depth Velocity (m/s)
and time (°C) (g/l) slope (m)
Shengou creek 26°060 3300 N 25.0 0 0 Step-pool system, no 0.105 Step section: Boulders and Step section: Step
sediment motion cobbles; Pool section: aquatic 0.1–0.3; Pool section:0.6–1;
grass, gravel and fluid mud section: 0–0.8 Pool section:
0–0.3
103°120 5400 E
May 14, 2005
26°060 2100 N 11.8 0 0 Step section: Step section:
0.1–0.4; Pool 0.4–1.5; Pool
section: 0–0.8 section: 0–1.2
103°120 3300 E
December 28,
2007
Jiangjia Ravine 26°150 5000 N 23.0 0 0.75 No step pool, bed load 0.055 Gravel bed; sand and gravel 0.05–0.15 0.4–1.2
motion, unstable bed filling in the interstices of
boulders
103°080 4500 E
May 15, 2005
26°140 4900 N 16.2 1.6 2.20 0.05–0.25 0.5–1.4
103°080 100 E
December 27,
2007
Xiaobaini Ravine 26°050 4500 N 25.0 21.7 1.01 No step pool, intensive 0.050 A moving layer of sand and 0–0.1 0.3–1.2
bed load and suspended gravel on the bed; unstable
load motion, unstable bed bed
103°080 2900 E
May 15, 2005
26°000 900 N 15.3 16.7 1.21 0–0.1 0.4–1.2
103°120 3200 E
December 27,
2007

Note: CW is the weight concentration of suspended load; gb is the rate of bed load transport per width.
 G.A. Yu et al. / Journal of Hydrology 414–415 (2012) 231–243 239

Table 5
Density of benthic macroinvertebrates (ind/m2).

Taxa Shengou Creek Jiangjia Ravine Xiaobaini Ravine

2005 2007 2005 2007 2005 and 2007
Amphipoda
Gammaridae 85 76 0 0 0 0
Diptera
Chironomidae 138 11 0.08 0
Tipulidae 2 2 0.25 0 0
Ceratopogonidae 35 0 0 0 0
Simuliidae 9 0 0 0 0
Tabanidae 0 1 0 0 0
Trichoptera
Hydropsychidae 3 11 0 0 0
Brachycentridae 0 1 0 0 0
Glossosomatidae 0 3 0 0 0
Odonata
Gomphidae 14 3 0 0 0
Aeschnidae 2 3 0 0 0
Cordulegasteridae 3 0 0 0 0
Euphaeidae 3 0 0 0 0
Ephemeroptera
Ephemeridae 12 2 0 0 0
Baetidae 9 122 0 0.3 0
Siphlonuridae 4 0 0 0 0
Heptageniidae 0 5 0 0 0
Plecoptera
Perlidae 0 6 0 0 0
Coleoptera
Dryopidae 2 0 0 0 0
Hydrophilidae 0 0 0.17 0 0
Elmidae 27 1 0.17 0 0
Dytiscidae 0 1 0 0 0
Acariformes 0 0 0 0 0
Gastropoda 0.08
Planorbidae 2 0 – 0 0
Hydrobiidae 32 0 – 0 0
Physidae 2 0 – 0 0
Assimineidae 0 32 – 0 0
Oligochaeta 5 0 0 0 0
Hirudinea 3 1 0.1 0 0
Tricladida 0 1 0 0 0
Unidentified 6 0 0 0 0
Sum (ind/m2) 398 282 0.85 0.33 0
Biomass (g/m2) 6.5 2.97 0.01 0 0

Table 6
Bio-diversity index, bio-community index and habitat diversity index in the three study streams.
P
Stream Year Development of streambed structures i ai Habitat diversity HD Taxa richness S Bio-diversity H Bio-community index B

Shengou Creek 2005 Step-pool system 18 108 28 2.42 14.49

2007 18 108 28 1.92 10.83
Jiangjia Ravine 2005 Uniform stream morphology 4 16 8 1.79 0.29
2007 4 16 1 0 0
Xiaobaini Ravine 2005 Uniform stream morphology, moving coarse 0 0 0 0 0
sand and gravel
2007 0 0 0 0 0

ter two. The number and density of different families of benthic
macroinvertebrates are also much higher in Shengou Creek than
in the other two ravines (Wang et al., 2009).
Table 6 lists taxa richness (number of species), S; Shannon–
Weaver index, H; bio-community index, B; and habitat diversity
index, HD, for the three streams studied. The habitat diversity of
Shengou Creek is much larger than that for Jiangjia and Xiaobaini
Ravines because the steps and pools create high and low velocity
zones, shallow and mid-depth waters, and different substrates at
different places. The habitat diversity index is zero for Xiaobaini
Ravine, because the streambeds are covered with a layer of moving
sand and gravel, which is very bad for benthic invertebrates (Yu
et al., 2010). Taxa richness and the calculated B and H values of
Shengou Creek are much higher than for Jiangjia and Xiaobaini Ra-
vines, reaffirming that the development of a step-pool system has
remarkably improved the stream ecology.
Although significant progress has been made in the rehabilita-
tion of Shengou Creek, a fragile balance remains and further hu-
man disturbance may destroy the newly built resilience of this
system. For example, road construction may trigger slope instabil-
ity and initiate landslides. High slopes (mean slope >15°) and accu-
mulations of loose material along hillslopes and channels have
240 G.A. Yu et al. / Journal of Hydrology 414–415 (2012) 231–243
Fig. 9. Photographs showing road construction in the upper reach of Shengou Creek initiated during 2009–2010 that destroyed the critical stability of hillslopes (a), and
riparian vegetation destroyed as a result of constructing straight and uniform channel banks, which are negative to stream habitat and ecology (b).
great potential to form debris flows in flooding seasons, posing
considerable risk to downtown Dongchuan. Indeed, in one instance
the local government destroyed a section of the step-pool system
in an attempt to create a uniform channel form, removing stones
to build concrete walls and dams. The stability of the slope, chan-
nel, riparian vegetation and aquatic ecology was affected, as shown
in Fig. 9.
4. Discussion
Many mountain river basins in China are subject to frequent
sediment-related hazards. This is due to prevailingly degraded
environmental conditions and pronounced human disturbances.
Stream rehabilitation programs that seek to prevent sediment-
and-flow-related disasters while improving biological diversity
are among the main technological and social challenges faced in
mountainous regions today.
4.1. Rehabilitation strategies
For most hazardous mountain streams, concerted efforts should
first be made to minimize the impacts of sediment disasters. Stabi-
lizing hillslopes and streambed are critical considerations that
must be addressed at the outset of rehabilitation, promoting pros-
pects to enhance the self-rehabilitation capacity of streams. Con-
struction of check dams and other artificial streambed structures
does not completely stop sediment transport downstream. Rather,
it seeks to adjust the transport rate (especially the bed load trans-
port rate) to a more appropriate (balanced) range that is conducive
to aquatic and riparian ecology and landscape development.
Rehabilitation of Shengou Creek did not solely depend on check
dams (especially large-scale check dams) and other engineering
measures to transform the creek into a completely artificial channel.
Rather, comprehensive measures, including intensive vegetation
recovery, small artificial bed friction structures, and hillslope culti-
vation controls, have been applied to stabilize hillslopes, reducing
the occurrence of landslide and debris flow. Critically, this strategy
has given the stream time and space to rehabilitate itself (Palmer
et al., 2005). Effective implementation of comprehensive measures
to reduce soil erosion and related sediment-hazards has allowed
the system to regenerate natural streambed structures (i.e. step-
pool systems) along steep reaches. Although the geomorphological
and ecological features of the stream have been improved, the sys-
tem is not recovering to the type of stream it was previously.
Application of engineering measures in their own right is insuf-
ficient for rehabilitation of steep-slope hazardous mountain
streams. Biological and social management measures should be
integrated with engineering measures, such that comprehensive
management measures promote genuine and sustained improve-
ment in stream conditions (Hillman et al., 2008).
4.2. Effects of streambed structures
Streambed (resistance) structures play a significant role in pro-
moting channel stability and enhancing ecological maintenance of
steep mountain streams. Although large-scale check dams may limit
the effects of mountain hazards by trapping sediments and increas-
ing resistance along stepped longitudinal profiles over short time-
frames (years), they are unlikely to be sustainable over a longer
term (decades). Indeed, they typically induce a path dependency
whereby additional structures are progressively required. Such
measures may simply alter the magnitude-frequency spectra of sed-
iment disasters, potentially converting high-frequency low hazard
events to a low-frequency but very disastrous event, as recently
experienced in Zhouqu, a mountain county in China’s Gansu Prov-
ince, where a debris flow occurred on August 8, 2010 directly caused
more than 1500 deaths and costly economic losses. Strategies that
seek to prevent sediment-related hazards, such as mountain stream
stabilization measures that mimic step-pool morphology in a way of
creating streambed structures that enhance bed resistance and dis-
sipate flow energy, are more effective and sustainable than just
‘‘stopping’’ sediment flux. Generation of a stable bed also enhances
the development of riparian vegetation. Collectively, these mea-
sures improve the ecological conditions of river systems.
4.3. Impacts of exotic plants
An inconvenient truth for most of the Xiaojiang River basin is
the very poor and relatively homogeneous vegetation, serious soil
erosion, sediment hazards, and degraded environmental condi-
tions. Vegetation recovery to control soil erosion and enhance local
environment is an important part of rehabilitation planning in this
instance. The original plant species, mainly P. yunnanensis and
semi-humid ever-green broad-leaved forest, have been largely lost
due to long-term human disturbance and soil loss. Consequently,
micro-climate conditions (evaportranspiration, temporal and spa-
tial distribution of precipitation) and the geomorphology of the ba-
sin have been changed considerably. Though native species should
be prioritized in reforestation programs, it is often difficult to rein-
stigate native plants because of the altered environmental condi-
tions (e.g., soil, micro-climate, hydrology, geomorphology, etc.). It
is especially difficult to find fast-growing native species that are
effective for erosion control. Fast-growing exotic species provide
an alternative tradeoff for rehabilitation measures in these
instances.
 G.A. Yu et al. / Journal of Hydrology 414–415 (2012) 231–243
The introduction of L. leucocephala not only brought about veg-
etation recovery and reduced soil erosion, but also enhanced the
micro-climate and aided socioeconomic services. Negative byprod-
ucts include the limited and homogenous species composition of L.
leucocephala forests, as it hinders other plants species to develop,
negatively influencing ecological diversity in the planting area.
But, in this harsh, barren, hot and dry area, which previously had
very poor vegetation coverage and was subjected to serious soil
loss, ‘something is better than nothing’. Elsewhere, the conse-
quences may outstrip the benefits, in economic and environmental
terms (e.g., Vitousek et al., 1997; Stohlgren et al., 2003; Evans et al.,
2007; Kueffer et al., 2008). However, there are many parts of the
world in which introduced plant species have been successfully tri-
aled, such as the Hawaiian Islands (Smith, 1985), Puerto Rico (Lugo,
2004; Brown et al., 2006), Florida (Evans et al., 2007), and New Zea-
land (Marden et al., 2005).
Appraisal of the impacts of introduced alien, invasive species
should be made in relation to local conditions (including climate,
vegetation composition, topography and socio-cultural consider-
ations). Long-term monitoring of L. leucocephala and other intro-
duced exotic species is required, targeting quick responses to
negative impacts. Blanket condemnation of alien species in reha-
bilitation efforts is counterproductive, as invasive exotic plants
may present an important tool in efforts to rehabilitate important
ecosystem functions (Evans et al., 2007). Where their presence
does not unduly threaten surrounding ecosystems, alien species
can be tolerated or even used to good advantage, if they provide
essential ecological or socioeconomic services (Ewel and Putz,
2004).
5. Conclusion
Over the past 30 years, management initiatives incorporating
integrated measures of engineering (small and medium-sized
check dams and guiding dikes), biological (reforestation), and so-
cial measures (steep slope cultivation control and terraced field)
have greatly enhanced sediment hazard control and stream
rehabilitation efforts along Shengou Creek, a small steep-slope
debris-flow prone mountain stream in southwestern China. The
underlying processes and controls for river degradation of Shengou
Creek gained comprehensive studies before implementation of the
rehabilitation practices. The success of the rehabilitation measures
is gauged through a direct comparison with Jiangjia and Xiaobaini
Ravines, two non-rehabilitated debris-flow streams which are lo-
cated near to Shengou Creek and have similar climate and
geomorphology.
The application of an integrated program of measures along
Shengou Creek has effectively controlled soil erosion from both
hillslopes and upstream channels, stabilized main channels, and
prevented sediment-related hazards in the valley. Natural step-
pool systems and riparian vegetation have fully developed along
the creek, markedly improving the aquatic habitat and ecology.
In contrast, erosion has not been controlled along Jiangjia and
Xiaobaini Ravines and significant volumes of sediments continue
to be transported downstream, generating an aggrading, homoge-
nous channel bed that does not have a step-pool system (or other
effective streambed structures) or riparian vegetation cover.
Given the uniform streambed morphology and limited diversity
of stream habitats, the biomass per area of benthic macroinverte-
brates along Jiangjia Ravine is much lower than that along Shengou
Creek, and no macroinvertebrates were found in Xiaobaini Ravine
(where intensive sediment motion is experienced). Taxa richness,
biodiversity, and bio-community index are also much higher in
Shengou Creek than in Jiangjia and Xiaobaini Ravines. Coherent
programs of management actions not only target erosion control
241
along mountain river systems, but also strive to enhance the
stream ecological condition.
Acknowledgements
This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foun-
dation of China (NSFC, Nos. 40788001, 41001008 and 50823005/
E0901) and a visiting professorship for Gary Brierley from the
Chinese Academy of Sciences. Special thanks are given to Mr. Wang
Jun, the director of the Dongchuan Institute of Debris Flow Preven-
tion, for his kind provision of valuable information on the history
and processes of rehabilitating Shengou Creek. Prof. Ellen E. Wohl
and an anonymous reviewer are appreciated for their constructive
comments which are very helpful for enhancing the quality of this
paper.
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