Dynamics of nebkhas superimposed on a parabolic dune and their effect on the dune dynamics

We report here on a bare barchan dune in Israel that converted over the last 60 years to a shrub-covered parabolic dune due to changes in land use. Thirty nebkhas (sand mounds) that were formed by sand trapped around shrubs growing on the dune were monitored during winter of 2004–2005. The rates of erosion or deposition were measured at five points in the nebkhas by erosion pins. All nebkhas were shown to undergo erosion or deposition activity. Nebkhas on the windward slope of the dune experienced primarily erosion. Those on the lee slope grew slowly by the light accumulation of sand. The largest nebkhas were found on the dune crest; they built up through the accumulation of sand that was eroded from the windward slope. There were no significant differences between the rates of erosion/deposition of the five study points placed in each nebkha. However, there were significant differences between the rates of erosion/deposition of the nebkhas on the three dynamic segments of the dunes (windward, crest and lee). A change in dune dynamics was observed by the emergence of shrubs on the crest. These shrubs trapped sand and increased the crest height. The sand trapped on the crest was not deposited on the lee side. In that case, the dune becomes narrower, higher, with a concave shape (of the windward slope), during the transformation from a barchan to a parabolic dune.     

Movement of a small slipfaceless dome dune in the Namib Sand Sea, Namibia

The migration of a small slipfaceless dome dune close to the northern edge of the Namib Sand Sea has been measured by topographic survey. The dune dimensions are 45-m wide and 1-m high with a volume of 551 m³ that has been calculated as the difference between the dune's surface elevation and an interdune surface extrapolated from measurements around the edge of the dune. The migration direction, 64°, and distance moved, 90 m, are measured against stakes set out in 1976. The dune has moved about 90 m between 1976 and 1999. This is an average linear migration rate of around 4 m year⁻¹, and is equivalent to an annual sand transport rate of about 1.2 tonnes m⁻¹ year⁻¹. The calculated total potential sand flow in this part of the Namib Desert is 119 tonnes m⁻¹ year⁻¹, and the resultant potential sand flow is 63 tonnes m⁻¹ year⁻¹. The dune migration is therefore about 1% of the total potential sandflow and 2% of the resultant indicating that dune migration is only a small part of total potential sand transport. The results suggest that small slipfaceless dome dunes are very inefficient at trapping sand, and that winds blowing across the interdune in this area are undersaturated with sand.     

Measurements and numerical simulations of the degree of activity and vegetation cover on parabolic dunes in north-eastern Brazil

In this work we present measurements of vegetation cover over parabolic dunes with different degrees of activation along the north-eastern Brazilian coast. We extend the local values of the vegetation cover density to the whole dune by correlating measurements with the relative brightness index C of high resolution QuickBird panchromatic satellite images of the dune field. We then introduce the vegetation data into a continuous model for vegetated dunes, coupling sand erosion and vegetation growth, and perform simulations of the evolution of the morphology and vegetation cover of parabolic dunes. Finally, from the comparison of both, the measurements and the simulation results, we show that the model is able to predict the dune shape and the vegetation distribution of real parabolic dunes as result of the evolution of a blow-out.     

Challenges of calculating dunefield mobility over the 21st century

Attention has been directed towards both the impacts of future climate change on environmental systems and dunefield activity in the past, but there has been relatively little consideration of potential dune mobility in a future and possibly warmer world. This paper considers the use and limitations of four Global Circulation Models (GCMs) (Hadcm3, Hadcm2, CSIRO-mk2b and CGCM1), in combination with simple dune mobility indices to predict the activity of the Kalahari dunefield. It is clear that uncertainties surround GCM resolution and accuracy, mobility index robustness for the calculation of intra-annual dune mobility and data collection for mobility index calibration. Macro-scale studies that look at large areas of the world over long time scales are well suited to GCM and mobility index use, but dune mobility can be variable within a dunefield, and it is the extreme sand transporting events, occurring at high temporal resolutions, that are the most important for short term studies. To investigate intra-annual changes in dune mobility over a specific dunefield techniques such as downscaling, weather generators and probability curve fitting can help provide climate predictions for smaller areas over shorter time frames. However, these methods introduce uncertainty of their own, and they often rely on the accuracy of original GCM predictions or the climate parameter relationships observed at present. Analysis of intra-annual changes also requires mobility indices that can model monthly mobility patterns well, although existing indices have only been used for calculating annual dune mobility potential. When they are used for intra-annual predictions, the lack of lag response between precipitation decreases and the assumed vegetation dieback leads to an exaggerated amplitude pattern of dune mobility throughout the year. Calibration of dune mobility indices to dune mobility observed on the ground is therefore important but is hampered by a lack of observed measurements for individual months. Solutions are available to overcome some of the outlined problems, but they can provide their own set of uncertainties, which combine to further reduce the confidence given to future dune mobility predictions.     

The dynamic effects of moisture on the entrainment and transport of sand by wind

There is an increasing awareness of the influence of surface moisture on aeolian entrainment and transport of sediment. Existing wind tunnel studies have shown the impact of a limited range of moisture contents on entrainment thresholds but similar investigations are lacking in the field. The research reported here investigated the influence of changes in surface moisture content on sand entrainment and transport on a meso-tidal beach in Anglesey, North Wales.High frequency (1 Hz) wind velocities measured with hot-wire anemometers were combined with grain impact data from a Sensit monitor and mass flux measurements from a standard sand trap. Surface and near-surface moisture contents were assessed gravimetrically from surface sand scrapes and also directly by using a ThetaProbe. Critical threshold values for entrainment were specified using a modified form of the time fraction equivalence method (Stout, J.E., Zobeck, T.M., 1996a. Establishing the threshold condition for soil movement in wind-eroding fields. Proceedings of the International Conference on Air Pollution from Agricultural Operations. MWPS C-3, Kansas City, 7–9 February 1996, pp. 65–71).Results indicate a time-dependent change in dominant control of the sand transport system from moisture to wind speed, dependent upon the moisture content of the surface sediment. This interchange between controlling parameters on both entrainment and transport was very sensitive to prevailing moisture conditions and took place over a period of minutes to hours. Under conditions experienced in the experiments presented here, the critical moisture threshold for sediment entrainment was determined to be between 4% and 6%, higher than the 1–4% specified in previous wind tunnel experiments. Furthermore, a moisture content of nearly 2% (where moisture was adhered to transported sediment) appeared to have little or no impact on the rate of sand flux.     

Mineralogical maturity in dunefields of North America, Africa and Australia

Studies of dunefields in central and western North America show that mineralogical maturity can provide new insights into the origin and evolution of aeolian sand bodies. Many of the world's great sand seas in Africa, Asia and Australia are quartz-dominated and thus can be considered to be mineralogically mature. The Algodones (California) and Parker (Arizona) dunes in the southwestern United States are also mature, but have inherited a high degree of mineralogical maturity from quartz-rich sedimentary rocks drained by the Colorado River. In Libya, sediments of the Zallaf sand sea, which are almost pure quartz, may have originated in a similar fashion. The Fort Morgan (Colorado) and Casper (Wyoming) dunefields in the central Great Plains of North America, and the Namib sand sea of southern Africa have an intermediate degree of mineralogical maturity because their sources are large rivers that drained both unweathered plutonic and metamorphic rocks and mature sedimentary rocks. Mojave Desert dunefields in the southwestern United States are quite immature because they are in basins adjacent to plutonic rocks that were their sources. Other dunefields in the Great Plains of North America (those in Nebraska and Texas) are more mature than any possible source sediments and therefore reflect mineralogical evolution over time. Such changes in composition can occur because of either of two opposing long-term states of the dunefield. In one state, dunes are stable for long periods of time and chemical weathering depletes feldspars and other weatherable minerals in the sediment body. In the other state, which is most likely for the Great Plains, abrasion and ballistic impacts deplete the carbonate minerals and feldspars because the dunes are active for longer periods than they are stable.     

Geospatial analysis of a coastal sand dune field evolution: Jockey's Ridge, North Carolina

Preservation and effective management of highly dynamic coastal features located in areas under development pressures requires in-depth understanding of their evolution. Modern geospatial technologies such as lidar, real time kinematic GPS, and three-dimensional GIS provide tools for efficient acquisition of high resolution data, geospatial analysis, feature extraction, and quantification of change. These techniques were applied to the Jockey's Ridge, North Carolina, the largest active dune field on the east coast of the United States, with the goal to quantify its deflation and rapid horizontal migration. Digitized contours, photogrammetric, lidar and GPS point data were used to compute a multitemporal elevation model of the dune field capturing its evolution for the period of 1974– 2004. In addition, peak elevation data were available for 1915 and 1953. Analysis revealed possible rapid growth of the dune complex between 1915–1953, followed by a slower rate of deflation that continues today. The main dune peak grew from 20.1 m in 1915 to 41.8 m in 1953 and has since eroded to 21.9 m in 2004. Two of the smaller peaks within the dune complex have recently gained elevation, approaching the current height of the main dune. Steady annual rate of main peak elevation loss since 1953 suggests that increase in the number of visitors after the park was established in 1974 had little effect on the rate of dune deflation. Horizontal dune migration of 3–6 m/yr in southerly direction has carried the sand out of the park boundaries and threatened several houses. As a result, the south dune section was removed and the sand was placed at the northern end of the park to serve as a potential source. Sand fencing has been an effective management strategy for both slowing the dune migration and forcing growth in dune elevation. Understanding the causes of the current movements can point to potential solutions and suggest new perspectives on management of the dune as a tourist attraction and as a recreation site, while preserving its unique geomorphic character and dynamic behavior.     

On the rate of aeolian sand transport

A simple explicit formula for the transport rate of windblown sand is derived based on physical reasoning. The curve relating the dimensionless transport rate to the dimensionless friction speed exhibits the empirically well-established peak. In fact, the theory developed in the paper can explain the peaked shape of this curve. Three empirically determined coefficients in the formula can be given a physical interpretation. The formula is shown to fit transport rates measured in wind-tunnel experiments well, except for very coarse sand. Formulae for the wind profile in the saltation layer and for the grain dislodgement rate in dependence on the friction speed are obtained as part of the theory.     

A parameterisation for the threshold shear velocity to initiate deflation of dry and wet sediment

A new parameterisation for the threshold shear velocity to initiate deflation of dry and wet particles is presented. It is based on the balance of moments acting on particles at the instant of particle motion. The model hence includes a term for the aerodynamic forces, including the drag force, the lift force and the aerodynamic-moment force, and a term for the interparticle forces. The effect of gravitation is incorporated in both terms. Rather than using an implicit function for the effect of the aerodynamic forces as reported earlier in literature, a constant aerodynamic coefficient was introduced. From consideration of the van der Waals force between two particles, it was further shown that the effect of the interparticle cohesion force between two dry particles on the deflation threshold should be inversely proportional to the particle diameter squared. The interparticle force was further extended to include wet bonding forces. The latter were considered as the sum of capillary forces and adhesive forces. A model that expresses the capillary force as a function of particle diameter squared and the inverse of capillary potential was deduced from consideration of the well-known model of Fisher and the Young–Laplace equation. The adhesive force was assumed to be equal to tensile strength, and a function which is proportional to particle diameter squared and the inverse of the potential due to adhesive forces was derived. By combining the capillary-force model and the adhesive force model, the interparticle force due to wet bonding was simplified and written as a function of particle diameter squared and the inverse of matric potential. The latter was loglinearly related to the gravimetric moisture content, a relationship that is valid in the low-moisture content range that is important in the light of deflation of sediment by wind. By introducing a correction to force the relationship to converge to zero moisture content at oven dryness, the matric potential–moisture content relationship contained only one unknown model parameter, viz. moisture content at −1.5 MPa. Working out the model led to a rather simple parameterisation containing only three coefficients. Two parameters were incorporated in the term that applies to dry sediment and were determined by using experimental data as reported by Iversen and White [Sedimentology 29 (1982) 111]. The third parameter for the wet-sediment part of the model was determined from wind-tunnel experiments on prewetted sand and sandy loam aggregates. The model was validated using data from wind-tunnel experiments on the same but dry sediment, and on data obtained from simulations with the model of Chepil [Soil Sci. Soc. Am. Proc. 20 (1956) 288]. The experiments showed that soil aggregates should be treated as individual particles with a density equal to their bulk density. Furthermore, it was shown that the surface had to dry to a moisture content of about 75% of the moisture content at −1.5 MPa before deflation became sustained. The threshold shear velocities simulated with our model were found to be in good agreement with own observations and with simulations using Chepil's model.     

The use of heavy metal concentrations and dendrochronology in the reconstruction of sediment accumulation, Ma a Panew River Valley, southern Poland

Heavy metal concentrations were investigated in overbank sediments of the Mala Panew River, southern Poland. Samples were collected from seven vertical profiles located within channel infills of a 20th century floodplain at three sites, each up to 50 m wide. In each profile, 15–24 samples were collected and analysed for Ba, Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn. Sequential extraction of these elements was carried out in the 0.063-mm fraction of selected samples. Additionally, the age of the oldest trees growing close to the profiles has been used to estimate the initiation of sediment accumulation there. Ba, Cu, and Pb, which occur mostly in less mobile, moderately reducible, and residual fractions, were used for sediment dating. Zn and Cd, which in 50–75% occur in the mobile exchangeable fraction, were not suitable for dating. Correlation of Ba, Cu, and Pb concentrations in vertical profiles with changes in the load of effluents discharged to the river showed abrupt changes in the thickness of the strongly polluted sediments across the floodplains. A comparison of the relative changes between heavy metal peaks in sediments of similar age in the different profiles suggests a variable rate of downward metal migration. In general, none of the heavy metals investigated seems to have been mobilised within the stratigraphic layers above the water table. In layers located at stratigraphically lower levels, the Zn and Cd peaks seem to migrate several centimetres to several decimetres down in the profile. In profiles inundated for several weeks every year, Zn and Cd, as well as the relatively less mobile Ba, Cu, and Pb, have migrated downward by several decimetres. The investigation shows that frequent fluctuations of the water table have blurred the original depositional metal patterns of metal concentrations within a period of less than 40 years.     

Decadal-scale variation in dune erosion and accretion rates: An investigation of the significance of changing storm tide frequency and magnitude on the Sefton coast, UK

Monitoring of frontal dune erosion and accretion on the Sefton coast in northwest England over the past 50 years has revealed significant spatial and temporal variations. Previous work has shown that the spatial variations primarily reflect longshore differences in beach and nearshore morphology, energy regime and sediment budget, but the causes of temporal variations have not previously been studied in detail. This paper presents the results of work carried out to test the hypothesis that a major cause of temporal variation is changes in the frequency and magnitude of storms, surges and resulting high tides. Dune toe erosion/accretion records dating from 1958 have been compared with tide gauge records at Liverpool and Heysham. Relatively high dune erosion rates at Formby Point 1958–1968 were associated with a relatively large number of storm tides. Slower erosion at Formby, and relatively rapid accretion in areas to the north and south, occurred during the 1970's and 1980's when there were relatively few major storm tides. After 1990 rates of dune erosion at Formby increased again, and dunes to the north and south experienced slower accretion. During this period high storm tides have been more frequent, and the annual number of hours with water levels above the critical level for dune erosion has increased significantly. An increase in the rate of mean sea-level rise at both Liverpool and Heysham is evident since 1990, but we conclude that this factor is of less importance than the occurrence of extreme high tides and wave action associated with storms. The incidence of extreme high tides shows an identifiable relationship with the lunar nodal tidal cycle, but the evidence indicates that meteorological forcing has also had a significant effect. Storms and surges in the eastern Irish Sea are associated with Atlantic depressions whose direction and rate of movement have a strong influence on wind speeds, wave energy and the height of surge tides. However, preliminary analysis has indicated only a modest relationship between dune erosion/accretion rates and the North Atlantic Oscillation index.     

Dynamic processes of a simple linear dune—a study in the Taklimakan Sand Sea, China

Samples of dune sands, surveys of the morphology and field measurements of wind velocity and direction of a simple linear dune in Taklimakan Sand Sea show that the airflow and sand flux vary with the change of wind direction on the dune surface. Decrease of the airflow stress on the lee flank does not result in much decrease of the sand flux because of the low threshold shear velocities and the airflow conditions. There are no significant relations between the sand flux on the lee flank and the angle of incidence of the airflow. The low threshold shear velocities and the maintenance of the sand flux at the lee flank are the main mechanisms keeping the linear shape of the dunes. Measurements of the sand flux shows that it reaches a maximum on the crest of the dune. The grain size of the transported sands has some differences compared to that of the dune surface. The sands transported are finer than that on the dune surface, but better sorted under the influence of the medium to low wind activity. The field experiment results exhibit that it is possible for the dunes to be shaped as linear dunes during the processes of accumulation and elongation.     

Climatic influences on Holocene variations in soil erosion rates on a small hill in the Mojave Desert

A detailed study of a small hill in NE Mojave Desert in eastern California was conducted to elucidate the effect of climate on the variations in soil erosion rates through Holocene. Field surveys and sampling were carried out to obtain information on topography, geomorphology, soil and vegetation conditions, seismic refraction, sediment deposition, and hillslope processes. Integration of this information allowed reconstruction of the hill topography at the end of the Pleistocene, deduction of the evolution of the hill from the end of the Pleistocene to the present, and estimation of total soil losses resulting from various hillslope processes. The estimates are consistent with the premise that early Holocene climate change resulted in vegetation change, soil destabilization, and topographic roughening. Current, very slow, hillslope transport rates (e.g., 5 mm ky⁻¹ by rodent burrowing, a presently important transport form) appear inconsistent with the inferred total soil loss rate (31 mm ky⁻¹). Packrat midden studies imply that the NE Mojave Desert experienced enhanced monsoonal precipitation in the early Holocene, presumably accentuating soil loss. Water erosion on one slope of the hill was simulated using Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP), a process-based erosion model, using 4 and 6 ky of precipitation input compatible with an appropriate monsoonal climate and the present climate, respectively. The WEPP-predicted soil losses for the chosen slope were compatible with inferred soil losses. Identification of two time periods within the Holocene with distinct erosion characteristics may provide new insight into the current state of Mojave Desert landform evolution.     

Bed load transport in an obstruction-formed pool in a forest, gravelbed stream

This paper examines channel dynamics and bed load transport relations through an obstruction-forced pool in a forest, gravel-bed stream by comparing flow conditions, sediment mobility, and bed morphology among transects at the pool head, centre, and tail. Variable sediment supply from within and outside of the channel led to a complex pattern of scour and fill hysteresis. Despite the large flood magnitude, large portions of the bed did not scour. Scour was observed at three distinct locations: two of these were adjacent to large woody debris (LWD), and the third was along the flow path deflected by a major LWD obstruction. Bed material texture showed little change in size distribution of either surface or subsurface material, suggesting lack of disruption of the pre-flood bed. Fractions larger than the median size of the bed surface material were rarely mobile. Sediment rating relations were similar, although temporal variation within and among stations was relatively high. Relations between bed load size distribution and discharge were complex, showing coarsening with increasing discharge followed by fining as more sand was mobilized at high flow. Lack of local scour in the pool combined with bed load fining and net fill by relatively fine material implied that the dominant sources of mobile sediment were upstream storage sites and local bank collapse. Patterns of flow, channel dynamics, and sediment mobility were strongly affected by a LWD flow obstruction in the pool centre that created turbulent effects, thereby enhancing entrainment and transport in a manner similar to scour at bridge piers.     

The evidence for paraglacial sedimentation and its temporal scale in the deglacierizing basin of Small River Glacier, Canada

Spatially sampled suspended sediment data from extra-channel surfaces of different ages during rainfall events were used to infer the timescale of landscape adjustment to Little Ice Age (LIA) deglacierization at Small River Glacier, Canada. Surface ages were determined by aerial photograph interpretation. Turbidimeters were installed in three ephemeral channels on “young,” “mature” and “old” surfaces; and their response to rainfall events of different magnitudes recorded. Results showed “young” ice proximal surfaces exposed since 1977 were increasingly vulnerable to mobilization during rainfall events. A suspended sediment response from “old” surfaces exposed since 1910 was recorded for only three events with 5- and 30-year return periods. The intensity and duration of rainfall events therefore had to increase in magnitude to mobilize sediment on surfaces of increasing maturity. Hysteresis in the channel suspended sediment response further confirmed the dependence of surface response on rainfall event magnitude. The rapid temporal decline in surface response indicated that surface armoring or sediment exhaustion is stabilizing surfaces within decades of exposure from the LIA maximum (ca. 1910) at Small River Glacier. However, further perturbation, for example by glacial advance or extreme climatic events, would likely modify the pattern of suspended sediment yields by changing terrain surface mobilization thresholds and reconfiguring channel sediment stores. We therefore suggest that it is difficult to determine when “paraglacial sedimentation” ceases to influence suspended sediment yields, and therefore significantly limiting the usefulness of the term to describe the period of suspended sediment yield adjustment following deglacierization.     

Tectonic forcing of longitudinal valleys in the Himalaya: morphological analysis of the Ladakh Batholith, North India

Longitudinal valleys form first order topographic features in many mountain belts. They are commonly located along faults that separate tectonic zones with varying uplift histories. The Indus Valley of Ladakh, northern India, runs northwestwards following the boundary between the relatively undeformed Ladakh Batholith to the north–east and the folded and thrusted Zanskar mountains to the south–west. In this region the Shyok Valley, on the northern side of the batholith, approximately parallels the course of the Indus. This study investigates geomorphic variations in transverse catchments that drain the Ladakh Batholith, into the Indus and Shyok rivers. The batholith has been divided into three zones based on varying structural characteristics of its northeastern and southwestern boundaries. Morphometric analysis of 62 catchments that drain into the Indus and Shyok valleys was carried out using three digital datasets, and supported by field observations. Morphometric asymmetry is evident in the central zone where the Shyok valley is considered tectonically inactive, but the Indus Valley is bound by the northeastwardly thrusting Indus Molasse and the batholith. In this zone the catchments that drain into the Indus Valley are more numerous, shorter, thinner and have lower hypsometric integrals than those that drain into the Shyok. By linking these observations with the regional geology and thermochronological data it is proposed that high sediment discharge from the deformed Indus Molasse Indus Valley has progressively raised base levels in the Indus Valley and resulted in sediment blanketing of the opposing tectonically quiescent catchments that drain southwestwards off the batholith. The Indus Molasse thrust front has propagated at least 36 km towards the Ladakh Batholith over the last 20 Ma. Hence it is proposed that this long term asymmetric structural deformation and exhumation has forced the Indus longitudinal valley laterally into the Ladakh Batholith resulting in the morphometric asymmetry of its transverse catchments.     

Evolution of soil properties on stabilized sands in the Tengger Desert, China

The spatial and temporal patterns of pedogenesis on stabilized dunes at Shapotou, northwestern China, were studied on the time sequences of 0, 18, 35 and 43 years. The spatial pattern of soil formation was estimated by measuring the thickness of accumulated sand fractions on the stabilized dune surface and by analyzing the characteristics and properties of soil. The results showed that the environment of soil formation and circulation of soil material were influenced in the processes of shifting-sand fixation, and the mean soil particle size changed from >0.2 to <0.08 mm in 0–20 cm soil depth with the succession from cultivated plants to natural vegetation. The capacity of available soil water increased fivefold. Deep infiltration of water in soil no longer occurred due to the increase in soil water capacity and the change of redistribution of soil water in profiles. Soil microorganisms evolved from simple to complex. Interaction of these processes obviously brought about accumulation of soil fertility, evolution of soil profiles and development of the profiles towards aripsamments. The difference of micro-topography is closely related to redistribution of material and energy in soil formation.     

Morphology, mineralogy and magnetic susceptibility of epikarst-Terra Rossa developed in late Quaternary aeolianite deposits of southeastern Saurashtra, India

The nature and development of epikarst and soil development in aeolianites under a monsoonal climatic regime has not yet been described. Late Quaternary aeolianites of the southeastern coast of Saurashtra in western India show a wide array of epikarst and red-soil formation, and serve to typify the character of aeolianite weathering under a monsoonal climate. Three varieties of epikarst are identified that represent down-profile increase in groundwater flow. Five types of Terra Rossae represent a transition from the karstified limestone to soil development. Terra Rossae differ in the content of residual aeolianite and show both simple and complex profiles. The latter at places shows ped development. The results show that an ontogenetic (growth) sequence exists from incipient epikarst to complex palaeosols. This ontogenetic sequence represents an incremental increase in the groundwater budget of the region in response to changing intensification of the Indian monsoon rainfall. Magnetic properties of the Terra Rossae formed under a monsoonal climate are described for the first time. The magnetic susceptibility together with its frequency-dependent and anhysteretic remanent magnetization (ARM) represents both the concentration of single domain and ultrafine superparamagnetic (SP) magnetite. The formation of single domain and superparamagnetic magnetite and hematite are linked genetically to weathering of the aeolianite that leads to the formation of Terra Rossa.     

Framing realistic river rehabilitation targets in light of altered sediment supply and transport relationships: lessons from East Gippsland, Australia

Since European settlement, the Cann River in East Gippsland, Victoria has experienced a 700% increase in channel capacity, a 150-fold increase in the rate of lateral channel migration, a 45-fold increase in bankfull discharge and a 860-fold increase in annual sediment load. Over the last century, and primarily the last 40 years, channel incision has removed the equivalent of around 1500 years of floodplain deposition. A numerical floodplain evolution model is presented which suggests that under a best case scenario, infilling the incised channel trench will take 31,000 years and this is predicated on the full recovery of the immediate riparian vegetation and the in-channel loading of woody debris. The asymmetry in the recovery time following rapid channel change, compared with the original deposition of the material, is explained by a combination of the sediment-starved character of the catchment and the altered hydraulic conditions within the channel, principally associated with the role of woody debris. These factors have major implications for geomorphic recovery potential, constraining what can be realistically achieved in river rehabilitation.     

The role of morphology on the displacement of particles in a step–pool river system

Although studies of sediment transport in steep and coarse-grained channels have been more numerous in recent years, the dynamics of sediment transport in step–pool river systems remain poorly understood. This paper investigates displacements of individual clasts through Spruce Creek (Québec, Canada), a classic step–pool channel, and the effects of the channel morphology on the path length of the clasts. Passive integrated transponder tags (PIT) were used to track the displacement of 196 individual particles over a range of discharges including the bankfull stage. Clasts were tracked after five sequences of flood events. The results showed that the distance distributions match a two-parameter Gamma model. Equal mobility transport occurs for the particle size investigated during each sequence of flood events. Mean travel distance of the clasts can be estimated from excess stream power, and the mobility of the clasts is more than an order of magnitude less than the model reported in riffle–pool channels. The dominant morphological length scale of the bed also controls the path length of the clasts. These results confirm some preliminary observations on sediment transport in step–pool channels.