Paul Grams, Ph.D.
Paul Grams is a geomorphologist at the Southwest Biological Science Center's field station, Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center. He manages a set of projects collectively called the River Geomorphology and Geomorphic Change project. These include a range of studies that describe, quantify, and predict geomorphic change, mostly on large rivers in the western United States.&nb
Paul Grams received a BA in Geology from Middlebury College (1991), an M.S. in Geology from Utah State University (1997), and a Ph.D. in Geography and Environmental Engineering from Johns Hopkins University (2006). For an undergraduate thesis, Paul examined the effects of Hells Canyon Dam on the hydrology and downstream physical resources of the Snake River in Idaho. Since that time he has studied the interaction between human-induced changes in hydrology and channel form on many segments of the Green River in Utah and Colorado, small streams in northern Utah and southern Idaho, and the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. Paul’s current research interests are in fluvial geomorphology, sediment transport, the downstream effects of dams and diversions, and the connections between physical processes and ecological systems on large rivers. Paul is currently a research hydrologist at the Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center and manages several projects related to geomorphology, sediment budgets, and the effects of controlled floods on the Colorado River in Grand Canyon and in other parts of the Colorado River Basin.
Science and Products
Linking morphodynamic response with sediment mass balance on the Colorado River in Marble Canyon: issues of scale, geomorphic setting, and sampling design
Nearshore thermal gradients of the Colorado River near the Little Colorado River confluence, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, 2010
Three experimental high-flow releases from Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona— Effects on the downstream Colorado River ecosystem
Proceedings of the Colorado River Basin Science and Resource Management Symposium, November 18-20, 2008, Scottsdale, Arizona
Sediment-transport during three controlled-flood experiments on the Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon Dam, with implications for eddy-sandbar deposition in Grand Canyon National Park
20,000 grain-size observations from the bed of the Colorado River, and implications for sediment transport through Grand Canyon
Evaluation of Water Year 2011 Glen Canyon Dam Flow Release Scenarios on Downstream Sand Storage along the Colorado River in Arizona
2008 High-flow experiment at Glen Canyon Dam: Morphologic response of eddy-deposited sandbars and associated aquatic backwater habitats along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park
Sandbar response in Marble and Grand Canyons, Arizona, following the 2008 high-flow experiment on the Colorado River
2008 High-Flow Experiment at Glen Canyon Dam Benefits Colorado River Resources in Grand Canyon National Park
Geomorphic response of sandbars to the March 2008 high-flow experiment on the Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon Dam
Future challenges for science and resource management of the Colorado River
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Linking morphodynamic response with sediment mass balance on the Colorado River in Marble Canyon: issues of scale, geomorphic setting, and sampling design
Measurements of morphologic change are often used to infer sediment mass balance. Such measurements may, however, result in gross errors when morphologic changes over short reaches are extrapolated to predict changes in sediment mass balance for long river segments. This issue is investigated by examination of morphologic change and sediment influx and efflux for a 100 km segment of the Colorado RAuthorsPaul E. Grams, David J. Topping, John C. Schmidt, Joseph E. Hazel, Matt KaplinskiNearshore thermal gradients of the Colorado River near the Little Colorado River confluence, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, 2010
Construction and operation of Glen Canyon Dam has dramatically impacted the flow of the Colorado River through Glen, Marble, and Grand Canyons. Extremes in both streamflow and water temperature have been suppressed by controlled releases from the dam. Trapping of sediment in Lake Powell, the reservoir formed by Glen Canyon Dam, has also dramatically reduced the supply of suspended sediment enterinAuthorsRob Ross, Paul E. GramsThree experimental high-flow releases from Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona— Effects on the downstream Colorado River ecosystem
Three high-flow experiments (HFEs) were conducted by the U.S. Department of the Interior at Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona, in March 1996, November 2004, and March 2008. Also known as artificial or controlled floods, these scheduled releases of water above the dam's powerplant capacity were designed to mimic pre-dam seasonal flooding on the Colorado River. The goal of the HFEs was to determine whether hAuthorsTheodore S. Melis, Paul E. Grams, Theodore A. Kennedy, Barbara E. Ralston, Christopher T. Robinson, John C. Schmidt, Lara M. Schmit, Richard A. Valdez, Scott A. WrightProceedings of the Colorado River Basin Science and Resource Management Symposium, November 18-20, 2008, Scottsdale, Arizona
Since the 1980s, four major science and restoration programs have been developed for the Colorado River Basin to address primarily the conservation of native fish and other wildlife pursuant to the Endangered Species Act (ESA): (1) Recovery Implementation Program for Endangered Fish Species in the Upper Colorado River Basin (commonly called the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery ProgramAuthorsTheodore S. Melis, John F. Hamill, Glenn E. Bennett, Lewis G. Coggins,, Paul E. Grams, Theodore A. Kennedy, Dennis M. Kubly, Barbara E. RalstonSediment-transport during three controlled-flood experiments on the Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon Dam, with implications for eddy-sandbar deposition in Grand Canyon National Park
Three large-scale field experiments were conducted on the Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon Dam in 1996, 2004, and 2008 to evaluate whether artificial (that is, controlled) floods released from the dam could be used in conjunction with the sand supplied by downstream tributaries to rebuild and sustainably maintain eddy sandbars in the river in Grand Canyon National Park. Higher suspended-AuthorsDavid J. Topping, David M. Rubin, Paul E. Grams, Ronald E. Griffiths, Thomas A. Sabol, Nicholas Voichick, Robert B. Tusso, Karen M. Vanaman, Richard R. McDonald20,000 grain-size observations from the bed of the Colorado River, and implications for sediment transport through Grand Canyon
In the late 1990s, we developed digital imaging hardware and software for in-situ mapping of sand-sized bed sediment of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. This new technology enables collection and processing of hundreds of grain-size samples in a day. Bed grain size was mapped using this equipment on 8 surveys of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, for a total of more than 20,000 observations spAuthorsDavid M. Rubin, David J. Topping, Henry Chezar, Joseph E. Hazel, John C. Schmidt, Michael J. Breedlove, Theodore S. Melis, Paul E. GramsEvaluation of Water Year 2011 Glen Canyon Dam Flow Release Scenarios on Downstream Sand Storage along the Colorado River in Arizona
This report describes numerical modeling simulations of sand transport and sand budgets for reaches of the Colorado River below Glen Canyon Dam. Two hypothetical Water Year 2011 annual release volumes were each evaluated with six hypothetical operational scenarios. The six operational scenarios include the current operation, scenarios with modifications to the monthly distribution of releases, andAuthorsScott A. Wright, Paul E. Grams2008 High-flow experiment at Glen Canyon Dam: Morphologic response of eddy-deposited sandbars and associated aquatic backwater habitats along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park
The March 2008 high-flow experiment (HFE) at Glen Canyon Dam resulted in sandbar deposition and sandbar reshaping such that the area and volume of associated backwater aquatic habitat in Grand Canyon National Park was greater following the HFE. Analysis of backwater habitat area and volume for 116 locations at 86 study sites, comparing one month before and one month after the HFE, shows that totalAuthorsPaul E. Grams, John C. Schmidt, Matthew E. AndersenSandbar response in Marble and Grand Canyons, Arizona, following the 2008 high-flow experiment on the Colorado River
A 60-hour release of water at 1,203 cubic meters per second (m3/s) from Glen Canyon Dam in March 2008 provided an opportunity to analyze channel-margin response at discharge levels above the normal, diurnally fluctuating releases for hydropower plant operations. We compare measurements at sandbars and associated campsites along the mainstem Colorado River, downstream from Glen Canyon Dam, at 57 loAuthorsJoseph E. Hazel, Paul E. Grams, John C. Schmidt, Matt Kaplinski2008 High-Flow Experiment at Glen Canyon Dam Benefits Colorado River Resources in Grand Canyon National Park
On March 5, 2008, the Department of the Interior began a 60-hour high-flow experiment at Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona, to determine if water releases designed to mimic natural seasonal flooding could be used to improve downstream resources in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Grand Canyon National Park. U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists and their cooperators undertook a wide range of phyAuthorsTheodore S. Melis, David J. Topping, Paul E. Grams, David M. Rubin, Scott A. Wright, Amy E. Draut, Joseph E. Hazel, Barbara E. Ralston, Theodore A. Kennedy, Emma Rosi-Marshall, Josh Korman, Kara D. Hilwig, Lara M. SchmitGeomorphic response of sandbars to the March 2008 high-flow experiment on the Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon Dam
The completion of Glen Canyon Dam in 1963 drastically altered the downstream flow regime and resulted in more than a 90 percent reduction of sand supply to the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park. Sandbars that were maintained by annual floods and a large sediment supply are now fewer in number and smaller in area and volume. Efforts to maintain sandbars in the current era of dam managemeAuthorsPaul E. Grams, Joseph E. Hazel, John C. Schmidt, Matt Kaplinski, Scott A. Wright, David J. Topping, Theodore S. MelisFuture challenges for science and resource management of the Colorado River
No abstract available.AuthorsJohn F. Hamill - News