Gully Control on Various Northern California Streams
The following gully stabilization designs were first constructed by the U.S.D.A. Forrest Service in the 1930’s. The first publication of such designs was “Erosion Control in Mountain Meadows.” This publication proved so successful that it was republished in 1980. Many gully stabilization structures can be constructed using simple hand tools without the use of heavy equipment. The following pictures are two examples of these methods.
Crew members pounded in stakes to form the crib wall of the gully stabilization structure.
Branches from fir trees were woven between the post to form a double crib wall. The spaces between the walls were filled with cobbles. Fir tree branches are placed at the downstream side of the structure to provide washout protection.
The structures were built in a series so that the sediment and pool backed up behind one reaches the apron of the previous structure.
These structures act as water filters, trapping sediments, raising the gully bottom to make it more stable and producing far cleaner water exiting the structure.
The redwood and rock apron gully structure pictured above is a design from of the NRCS engineering manual. This is another example of a gully stabilization structure that can be constructed without the use of heavy equipment using only hand tools.
These structures require a rock toe to provide wash out protection to the structure.
The structures were built in a series so that the sediment and pool backed up behind one reaches the apron of the previous structure.
Rather than being a sediment producer, this gully is now producing clean water.