Development of a reference-based method for identifying and scoring indicators of condition for coastal plain riparian reaches

Abstract Indicators of riparian ecosystem condition for headwater coastal plain streams were identified from data obtained from a reference population of reaches ranging widely in ecological condition. Each indicator was associated with some facet of hydrologic, biogeochemical, and/or habitat functioning and to channel condition, riparian zone condition, or both. Variation in the condition of the indicators among reference reaches provided a framework for developing narratives that could be used to partition and score the condition of the indicators from 0 (severely altered) to 100 (relatively unaltered). The developed narratives were the basis for creating a scoring approach for assessing stream condition at the reach scale (100-m long × 60-m wide segment). This approach was designed to be a rapid, field-based assessment method (