Mountain stream
Latten Mountains
A mountain stream is a
Alpine region is their steep gradient and sharply varying rates of flow within a short period of time, as a result of snowmelt and sudden storms. Streams of such nature are rarer in gently rolling countryside, although they may occur on scarp slopes where, although the height difference is not so great, they tend to have a larger catchment area
than mountain streams.
Mountain streams may be broadly divided into three sections. In the "
drainage channel" (Abflussrinne) into the "alluvial fan" where the transported debris is deposited
.
In Austria a mountain stream or Wildbach is even defined in law.[1]
Dangers
The material transported by a mountain stream can present serious dangers to people, animals and cultural landscapes, for example:
- Serious erosion – scouring of the stream bed,
- Subsequent landslips,
- Endangering of mountain forest and protected forest,
- Formation of a gorge,
- Release of a mudflow,
- Creation of a narrow section and impoundment of the stream – endangering settlements when it empties,
- Excessive deposition of debris, sediment and coarse gravel – sometimes further downstream at a debris cone or alluvial fan,
- Movement of the stream bed.
To combat several of these dangers, measures such as a
flooding
.
Usually the regional forestry or conservation department is responsible for the management of mountain streams.
References
- ^ At § 99 of the Federal Forestry Act, Austria.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Streams by mountain range.
- Wildbäche. Internet site of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management
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