Bucks Summit 1 - CRNS Soil Monitoring Station Install

The California Department of Water Resources is working in collaboration with U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) staff to install a Cosmic Ray Neutron Sensor (CRNS) monitoring station to monitor soil moisture and water content near Bucks Summit within the Feather River watershed. Equipment would be installed by USGS where an antenna, tipping bucket rain gage, air temperature probe, solar panel, data logger enclosure, and two CRNS would be attached to a triangular frame placed on the ground surface and attached to anchors driven 1.5' into the ground. The triangular frame would be approximately 5.5' wide by 8' tall constructed from steel vertical posts and aluminum trusses. An additional CRNS would be installed below ground requiring a trench approximately 7" deep, 7" wide, and 3.5' long to measure snow water content. A temporary soil pit (5' x 5' x 4'd) would be excavated for the installation of soil probes to collect soil moisture data. The soil probes and underground CRNS would be connected to the data logger enclosure with buried cables in conduit. The soil pit and associated trenching would be excavated and backfilled with the use of hand tools.