Measurement of Stream Discharge by Wading
by K. Michael Nolan, Ronald R. Shields, and Michael S. Rehmel
Water Resources Investigation Report 00-4036
USGS Training Class SW1271

Most years the U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) makes over 50,000 stream discharge measurements. Over 75 percent of those measurements are made by wading streams and using the velocity-area method. This presentation describes how stream discharge should be measured when wading and using the velocity-area method. It is intended as a learning and reference tool for anyone responsible for making wading discharge measurements.  The presentation is narrated, but you control the pace of the presentation. Text of narrations is provided, if you are unable to take advantage of the narrations.

Video clips are interspersed in the presentation. Even though these video clips have been rendered for delivery over the internet, they constitute rather large computer files. Although these clips will start streaming to your computer once they are partially downloaded, viewing these clips will be slow unless you have a high-speed internet connection. The class contains a test . Supervisors should be shown a completed test before granting credit for Training Class SW1271.  This class was initially released on CD-ROM. General Notes: Class modules are linked to the agenda seen on the left-hand side of this page. Clicking on an agenda topic will bring up modules in a separate browser window. Training modules load progressively. Modules will be displayed after 1/4 to 1/2 of the material has been loaded onto your computer. The remainder of the class will continue to load after the first screen has been displayed. You may experience problems if you try to go to later parts of a module before it has downloaded completely.

Your browser security settings will have to allow you access to "Active Content".Browsers used to view this training class must be version 5.0 or higher and have Flash Player 8.01 or higher installed. All class material is available using the Agenda on the left side of this page. Various parts of the class require the Adobe PDF reader to view.

Class notes are provided as both text and spoken narrations. You will need speakers attached to your computer to make use of the spoken narrations. Students will be given credit for this class upon navigating the class content and successfully completing the test on class material.