Active River Area

Abstract

The ARA framework is based upon dominant processes and disturbance regimes to identify areas within which important physical and ecological processes of the river or stream occur. The framework identifies five key subcomponents of the active river area: 1) material contribution zones, 2) meander belts, 3) riparian wetlands, 4) floodplains and 5) terraces. These areas are defined by the major physical and ecological processes associated and explained in the context of the continuum from the upper, mid and lower watershed in the ARA framework paper (Smith et al. 2008). The framework provides a spatially explicit manner for accommodating the natural ranges of variability to system hydrology, sediment transport, processing and transport of organic materials, and key biotic interactions.

Additional Resources

Active River Area (ARA) resources for the Eastern U.S. include the following products.

• Assessments that have used the ARA framework:
  • Lewis Creek assessment
  • Delaware River assessment
  • Penobscot River assessment
  • Poultney River assessment
  • North Carolina assessment

Citation

Smith, M.P., Schiff, R., Olivero, A. and MacBroom, J.G. (2008). THE ACTIVE RIVER AREA: A Conservation Framework for Protecting Rivers and Streams. The Nature Conservancy, Boston, MA.