Hydraulic Resistance Determination in Marsh Wetlands

Restoration of degraded and creation of constructed wetlands require proper hydraulic design. Of particular importance is the accurate determination of flow resistancefactors and the proper use of resistance equations, somethingessential for computing basic hydraulic parameters, such as depth and velocity, and for modeling the hydrodynamics of the system. In this study, selected previous theoretical, laboratoryand field studies on wetlands and vegetated-channel hydraulics are reviewed, and existing data from these studies are extractedand compiled in a common database. Resistance determining parameters are discussed, and results are summarized and presented, aiming at obtaining laws governing the flow, and deriving values for frictional factors under various flow scenarios. Graphs of Darcy-Weisbach f or Manning's n versus appropriate hydraulic parameters are presented.A modified n-VR graph is also presented, appropriate for marsh preliminary hydraulic analyses and design. These graphs also indicate missing information and can guide in future research. Copyright Kluwer Academic Publishers 2000