Geomorphic Controls on Historical Channel Planform Changes on the Lower Pages River,Hunter Valley,Australia

Historical planform changes in a 14.7 km reach of the lower Pages River were determined to assess whether they were autogenic (inherent in the river regime) or allogenic (driven by external changes) in nature so as to better focus river management activities and river restoration works. A pattern metamorphosis or complete change in river morphology occurred during the February 1955 flood. The peak discharge of this event exceeded the slope and grain size (intrinsic) threshold for braiding, converting the narrow, slightly sinuous stream to a wide, braided-like river. Five subsequent intrinsic threshold-exceeding floods did not cause further bar development because an over-widened channel already existed. Autogenic channel planform changes included sinuosity variations due to lateral migration and pattern metamorphosis due to the exceedance of a discharge–slope–grain size geomorphic threshold. Allogenic channel planform changes included: (1) realignment/channel straightening and artificial cutoffs by river training works; (2) lateral migration by increased bank erodibility due to riparian vegetation clearing; (3) lateral migration by the operation of a transitive geomorphic threshold involving the onset of a flood-dominated regime after 1946 and increased catchment runoff after 1830 due to large-scale clearing of catchment vegetation; and (4) the occurrence of a large flood in February 1955. Multiple forcing factors have clearly caused historical channel planform changes of the lower Pages River, making the design of river management and restoration works a complex matter outside the scope of simple formulaic protocols.     

Influence of vertical channel change associated with wood accumulations on delineating channel migration zones, Washington, USA

We combine hydraulic modeling and field investigations of logjams to evaluate linkages between wood-mediated fluctuations in channel-bed-and water-surface elevations and the potential for lateral channel migration in forest rivers of Washington state. In the eleven unconfined rivers we investigated, logjams were associated with reduced channel gradient and bank height. Detailed river gauging and hydraulic modeling document significant increases in the water-surface elevation upstream of channel-spanning wood accumulations. Logjams initiated lateral channel migration by increasing bed-or water-surface elevations above adjacent banks. Because the potential for a channel to avulse and migrate across its floodplain increases with the size and volume of instream wood, the area of the valley bottom potentially occupied by a channel over a specified timeframe — the channel migration zone (CMZ) — is dependent on the state of riparian forests. The return of riparian forests afforded by current land management practices will increase the volume and caliber of wood entering Washington rivers to a degree unprecedented since widespread clearing of wood from forests and rivers nearly 150 years ago. A greater supply of wood from maturing riparian forests will increase the frequency and spatial extent of channel migration relative to observations from wood-poor channels in the period of post-European settlement. We propose conceptual guidelines for the delineation of the CMZs that include allowances for vertical fluctuations in channel elevation caused by accumulations of large woody debris.     

River stabilisation due to changing climate and vegetation during the late Quaternary in western Tasmania, Australia

The Stanley River in western Tasmania, Australia, contains sub-fossil rainforest logs within the channel and floodplain. Of the more than 85 radiocarbon dates obtained, all but 3 date from 17 ka to the present and permit an interpretation of fluvial and related environmental changes over this period. Particular attention is focused on the interactive relationship between the river and its riparian rainforest. Following the Last Glacial Maximum, the Stanley River was a laterally active gravel-load system reworking most of its valley floor in the upstream reaches. With ameliorating conditions at the end of the Pleistocene, climate became less seasonal and flow regimes less energetic. Huon pines already present in the catchment, re-asserted themselves in the form of dense tree cover along the river banks and floodplains with basal floodplain deposition shifting from gravels to coarse sands and granules. By about 3.5 ka, a further change in climate reduced stream discharges substantially. As a result the channel reduced in size, transported finer sediment, became laterally stable, and the floodplain accreted with overbank deposits of sand and silt. Huon pines falling into the channel formed obstructions of woody debris, some surviving for 2 ka. These have reduced stream power and boundary shear stress, further contributing to channel stability. Generational sequences of Huon pines on the river banks, some extending back 1–2 ka, are additional evidence of this stability. Since the Pleistocene, changing climate and the re-establishment of dense riparian rainforest appear to have stabilised the river channels and floodplains of western Tasmania.     

Palaeoenyironments and human impact at Burraga Swamp in Montane rainforest,Barrington tops National Park,New South Wales,Australia

Palaeoecological studies have identified the broad patterns of environmental and climate change in highland south‐eastern Australia, but the detail of human impact on a variety of parameters and their interlinkages is largely missing. This study compares the erosion, productivity, fire and vegetation history in prehistoric and historical times at Burraga Swamp in montane rainforest in New South Wales. The known human impact is meagre; the major presently sustained impacts involve forestry in the surrounding sclerophyll forests and a low level of visits to the swamp by day‐walkers. While no significant changes in the largely oligotrophic conditions or in fire frequency were detected, changes in erosion rates and some vegetation change can be attributed to impacts since European settlement. There has been a small decline in eucalypts and a loss of fern cover, while grasses, Urtica and exotic species have expanded. It is clear that upland sites are sensitive to environmental change including low‐level human impact.     

The human role in changing river channels

Direct consequences of the human role, where human activity affects river channels through engineering works including channelization, dam construction, diversion and culverting, have been long recognised Marsh, 1864 and Thomas, 1956. The less obvious indirect effects of point and reach changes occurring downstream and throughout the basin, however, are much more recently appreciated, dating from key contributions by Strahler [Strahler, A.N., 1956. The nature of induced erosion and aggradation. In W. L. Thomas (Ed.), Man's Role in Changing the Face of the Earth. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 621–638.], Wolman [Wolman, M.G., 1967. A cycle of sedimentation and erosion in urban river channels. Geografiska Annaler 49A, 385–95.], Schumm [Schumm, S.A., 1969. River metamorphosis. Proceedings American Society of Civil Engineers, Journal Hydraulics Division 95, 255–73.], and Graf [Graf, W.L., 1977. The rate law in fluvial geomorphology. American Journal of Science, 277, 178–191.]. These are complemented by effects of alterations of land use, such as deforestation, intensive agriculture and incidence of fire, with the most extreme effects produced by building activity and urbanisation.Changing river channels are most evident in the channel cross-section where changes of size, shape and composition are now well-established, with up to tenfold increases or decreases illustrated by results from more than 200 world studies. In addition the overall channel planform, the network and the ecology have changed. Specific terms have become associated with changing river channels including enlargement, shrinkage and metamorphosis. Although the scope of adjustment has been established, it has not always been possible to predict what will happen in a particular location, because of complex response and contingency. The ways in which changes in cross-section relate to reach and network changes are less clear, despite investigations showing the distribution of changes along segmented channels.When considering the human role in relation to changing river channels, at least five challenges persist. First, because prediction of the nature and amount of likely change at a particular location is not certain, and because the contrasting responses of humid and arid systems needs to be considered, modelling is required to reduce uncertainty, as was first emphasised by Burkham [Burkham, D.E., 1981. Uncertainties resulting from changes in river form. American Society Civil Engineers Proceedings, Journal Hydraulics Division 107, 593–610.]. Second, feedback effects incorporated within the relationship between changes at channel, reach and network scales can have considerable implications, especially because changes now evident may have occurred, or have been initiated, under different environmental conditions. Third, consideration of global climate change is imperative when considering channel sensitivity and responses to threshold conditions. Fourth, channel design involving geomorphology should now be an integral part of restoration procedures. This requires, fifthly, greater awareness of different cultures as a basis for understanding constraints imposed by legislative frameworks. Better understanding of the ways in which the perception of the human role in changing river channels varies with culture as well as varying over time should enhance application of design for river channel landscapes.     

Channel response to a new hydrological regime in southwestern Australia

The Kent River flows from semi-arid headwaters in the agricultural (wheatbelt) region of Western Australia to a wetter and forested lower-catchment. It is set in an atypical fluvial environment, with rainfall decreasing inland towards a low-relief upper catchment. Replacement of native deep-rooted perennial vegetation with shallow-rooted seasonal crops has altered the hydrology of the upper catchment. Clearing for agriculture has also increased recharge of regional groundwater systems causing groundwater to rise and mobilise salt stores. This has increased stream salinity which has degradation riparian vegetation and decreased flow resistance. Elevated groundwater has also affected streamflow, increasing flow duration and annual discharge. The altered hydrological regime has affected geomorphic stability, resulting in channel responses that include incision and removal of uncohesive material. Channel response is variable, showing a high dependence on channel morphotype, channel boundary material and severity of salinity (degree of vegetation degradation). Response in confined reaches bounded by sandy material has been characterised by minor lateral bank erosion. In the fine-grained, wider, low-gradient reaches, mid-channel islands have been stripped of sandy sediment where vegetation has degraded. Following an initial period of high erosion rates in these reaches, the channel is now slowly adjusting to a new set of boundary conditions. The variable response has significant implications for management of salt affected rivers in southwestern Australia.     

Water quality changes in Lake McKenzie,Fraser Island,Australia: a Palaeolimnological approach

Surface water resources are highly valued for their ecological services and functions. However, their quality is under threat from anthropogenic activities and climate change. A detailed understanding of natural aquatic conditions and variability is rare. This is particularly the case in Australia where the variable climate produces significant ecological changes within natural thresholds and few long-term environmental data sets exist. Palaeoecology represents a means to identify natural fluctuations of aquatic ecosystems and provide long-term data for effective environmental management. This study uses a palaeoecological approach to identify biological and sediment changes in Lake McKenzie, Fraser Island, Australia. A sediment core was extracted from the lake and the fossil diatom assemblage and sediment particle size analysed. Inferred environmental changes were detected throughout the core that pre-date European impacts. The likely causes of these changes are climatic oscillations. Further dating is required to establish a detailed chronological record and identify the timing of detected environmental change at Lake McKenzie.     

Reconceptualising coarse sediment delivery problems in rivers as catchment-scale and diffuse

This paper assesses river channel management activities in the context of the interaction between coarse sediment delivery, climate change, river channel response and flood risk. It uses two main sources of evidence: (1) an intensive instrumentation of an upland river catchment using both traditional hydrometric and novel sediment sensing methods; and (2) a sediment delivery model that combines a treatment of sediment generation from mass failure with a treatment of the connectivity of this failed material to the drainage network. The field instrumentation suggests that the precipitation events that deliver sediment from hillslopes to the drainage network are different to those that transfer sediment within the network itself. Extreme events, that could occur at any time in the year (i.e. they are not dependent on wet antecedent conditions), were crucial for sediment delivery. However, sustained high river flows were responsible for the majority of transfer within the river itself. Application of three downscaling methods to climate model predictions for the 2050s and 2080s suggested a significant increase in the number and potential volume of delivery events by the 2050s, regardless of the climate downscaling scenario used. First approximations suggested that this would translate into annual bed level aggradation rates of between 0.10 and 0.20 m per year in the downstream main channel reaches. Second, the importance of this delivery for flood risk studies was confirmed by simulating the effects of 16 months of measured in-channel simulation with river flows scaled for climate change to the 2050s and 2080s. Short-term sedimentation could result in similar magnitude increases in inundated area for 1 in 0.5 and 1 in 2 year floods to those predicted for the 2050s in relation to increases in flow magnitude. Finally, we were able to develop an alternative approach to river management in relation to coarse sediment delivery, based upon reducing the rates of coarse sediment delivery through highly localised woodland planting, under the assumption that reducing delivery rates should reduce the rate of channel migration and hence the magnitude of the bank erosion problem. Thus, the paper demonstrates the need to conceptualise local river management problems in upland river environments as point scale manifestations of a diffuse sediment delivery process, with a much more explicit focus on the catchment scale, if our river systems are to become more insulated from the impacts of future climate changes.     

Progress in China’s climate change study in the 20th century

IPCC (2001) pointed out that the earth's climate was undergoing a remarkable change with characteristics of global warming over the past 100 years. The latest research showed that the global mean surface temperature has increased by about 0.6 oC since 1861. It is very likely that the last 20 years in the 20th century was the warmest decades. The Northern Hemisphere temperatures in the 20th century appeared to have been unprecedented during the past millennium. The research also indicates th…     

20世纪中国气候变化研究

Studies on the 20th century climate change in China have revealed that under the background of global warming over the past century,climate in China has also experienced significant change with mean annual temperature increased by about 0.5 °C.More reliable results for the latter part of the 20th century indicate that the largest warming occurred in Northwest China,North China and Northeast China,and the warming in winter is most significant.Although no obvious increase or decrease trends were detected for mean precipitation over China in the past half century,regional differences are very distinct.In the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River,precipitation increased,while that in the Yellow River Basin markedly decreased.Studies suggest that climate change in China seems to be related not only with the internal factors such as ENSO,PDO,and the others,but also with the anthropogenic effects such as greenhouse gas emissions,and land use.The future climate change studies in China seem to be important in narrowing understanding the nature of China's climate change and its main causes,since it is significant for projection and for impact assessment of climate change in the future.     

Transmutation of ancient settlements and environmental changes between 6000?2000 aBP in the Chaohu Lake Basin, East China

Based on the temporal-spatial distribution features of ancient settlement sites from the middle and late Neolithic Age to the Han dynasty in the Chaohu Lake Basin of Anhui Province, East China, using the methods of GIS combined with the reconstructed paleoenvironment by the records of lake sediment since Holocene, the transmutation of ancient settlements with response to environmental changes in this area has been discussed. Studies show that the main feature of transmutation of ancient settlements from the middle and late Neolithic Age to the Han Dynasty was that the distribution of settlements in this area changed from high altitudes to low ones and kept approaching the Chaohu Lake with the passage of time. These could be the response to the climate change from warm-moist to a relatively warm-dry condition during the middle Holocene, leading to the lake level fluctuations. The large area of exposed land provided enough space for human activities. These indicate that the above changes in geomorphologic evolution and hydrology influenced by climate conditions affected the transmutation of ancient settlements greatly. The distribution pattern of settlement sites was that the number of sites in the west was more than in the east. This pattern may be related to the geomorphologic conditions such as frequent channel shifting of the Yangtze River as well as flood disasters during the Holocene optimum. Therefore, climate change was the inducement of the transmutation of ancient settlements in the Chaohu Lake Basin, which exerted great influence on the distribution, expansion and development of the ancient settlements.     

Reconstruction of anastomosing river course by means of geophysical and remote sensing surveys (the Middle Obra Valley,western Poland)

Intensive hydro technical works were conducted in the middle course of the Obra River (Poland) at the beginning of the nineteenth century. The ‘natural’ river course (functioning before the major construction works) was transformed into three artificial canals. Ground‐penetrating radar investigations, ground‐truthed with coring and remote sensing surveys, were conducted to reconstruct the course taken by the river prior to the hydro technical works. This work demonstrated that the Obra formerly had an anastomosing planform. Radiocarbon dating indicated that the earliest of the retraced channels were active before 9000 bp . The retraced river system was formed in a proglacial stream valley perpendicularly cut by remains of subglacial tunnels, now partly filled with lakes. The planform consisted of one or two major channels and a number of secondary channels formed by avulsions. During the last 2000 years, some of the avulsions may have been caused by anthropogenic interventions. The sequences of channel fill deposits indicate that particular channels changed from major to secondary ones. Sand deposits filling the bottom and middle parts of the channels point to an important role of upstream sediment supply causing in‐channel aggradation triggering the avulsions. Moreover, spatial variability in river patterns was found within the anastomosing system. Valley sections with meandering anabranches, anastomosing patterns with traces of a lateral migration and traces of a transition from meandering to anastomosing planform were distinguished.     

Transmutation of ancient settlements and environmental changes between 6000–2000 aBP in the Chaohu Lake Basin,East China

Based on the temporal-spatial distribution features of ancient settlement sites from the middle and late Neolithic Age to the Han dynasty in the Chaohu Lake Basin of Anhui Province, East China, using the methods of GIS combined with the reconstructed paleoenvironment by the records of lake sediment since Holocene, the transmutation of ancient settlements with response to environmental changes in this area has been discussed. Studies show that the main feature of transmutation of ancient settlements from the middle and late Neolithic Age to the Han Dynasty was that the distribution of settlements in this area changed from high altitudes to low ones and kept approaching the Chaohu Lake with the passage of time. These could be the response to the climate change from warm-moist to a relatively warm-dry condition during the middle Holocene, leading to the lake level fluctuations. The large area of exposed land provided enough space for human activities. These indicate that the above changes in geomorphologic evolution and hydrology influenced by climate conditions affected the transmutation of ancient settlements greatly. The distribution pattern of settlement sites was that the number of sites in the west was more than in the east. This pattern may be related to the geomorphologic conditions such as frequent channel shifting of the Yangtze River as well as flood disasters during the Holocene optimum. Therefore, climate change was the inducement of the transmutation of ancient settlements in the Chaohu Lake Basin, which exerted great influence on the distribution, expansion and development of the ancient settlements.     

Transmutation of ancient settlements and environmental changes between 6000-2000 aBP in the Chaohu Lake Basin,East China

Based on the temporal-spatial distribution features of ancient settlement sites from the middle and Iate Neolithic Age to the Han dynasty in the Chaohu Lake Basin of Anhui Province,East China.using the methods of GIS combined with the reconstructed paleoenvironment by the records of lake sediment since Holocene,the transmutation of ancient sottlements with response to environmental changes in this area has been discussed.Studies show that the main feature of transmutation of ancient settlements from the middle and Iate Neolithic Age to the Han Dynasty was that the distribution of settlements In this area changed from high altitudes to Iow ones and kept approaching the Chaohu Lake with the passage of time.These could be the response to the climate change from warm-moist to a relatively warm-dry condition during the middle Holocene.leading to the lake level fluctuations.The large area of exposed land provided enough space for human activities.These indicate that the above changes in geomorphologic evolution and hydrology influenced by climate cenditions affected the transmutation of ancient settlements greatly.The distribution pattern of settlement sites was that the number of sites in the west was more than in the east.This pattern may be related to the geomorphologic conditions such as frequent channel shifting of the Yangtze River as well as flood disasters during the Holocene optimum.Therefore,climate change was the inducement of the transmutation of ancient settlements in the Chaohu Lake Basin,which exerted great influence on the distribution,expansion and development of the ancient settlements.     

Land-use/cover changes in relation to stream dynamics in a marginal graben along the northern Ethiopian Rift Valley

This paper investigates land-use/cover changes related to river dynamics in northern Ethiopia. Aerial photographs from 1965 to 1986, and SPOT images of 2007 and 2014 were used to extract land units. Land-use/cover changes took place in 48% of the entire landscape around the river across the last five decades. Changes related to swap accounted for 37%, whereas net changes accounted for 11%. The most systematic transitions in terms of gain were from shrubland to farmland, alluvial deposit to settlement, and alluvial deposit to active channel and settlement. Most of these transitions were related to the river dynamics and depict cyclic transitions: farmland → active channel → alluvial deposits → grassland/shrubland → farmland. Human interventions and natural vegetation succession were also very important. The study concludes that river systems have considerable impact on livelihood and need attention in land management undertakings in graben bottoms.     

巢湖流域6000-2000 aBP古聚落变更及环境变迁(英文)

Based on the temporal-spatial distribution features of ancient settlement sites from the middle and late Neolithic Age to the Han dynasty in the Chaohu Lake Basin of Anhui Province,East China,using the methods of GIS combined with the reconstructed paleoenvironment by the records of lake sediment since Holocene,the transmutation of ancient settlements with response to environmental changes in this area has been discussed.Studies show that the main feature of transmutation of ancient settlements from the middle and late Neolithic Age to the Han Dynasty was that the distribution of settlements in this area changed from high altitudes to low ones and kept approaching the Chaohu Lake with the passage of time.These could be the response to the climate change from warm-moist to a relatively warm-dry condition during the middle Holocene,leading to the lake level fluctuations.The large area of exposed land provided enough space for human activities.These indicate that the above changes in geomorphologic evolution and hydrology influenced by climate conditions affected the transmutation of ancient settlements greatly.The distribution pattern of settlement sites was that the number of sites in the west was more than in the east.This pattern may be related to the geomorphologic conditions such as frequent channel shifting of the Yangtze River as well as flood disasters during the Holocene optimum.Therefore,climate change was the inducement of the transmutation of ancient settlements in the Chaohu Lake Basin,which exerted great influence on the distribution,expansion and development of the ancient settlements.     

尼罗河及其流域环境的近期变化：以文献为依据

The Nile is one of the longest rivers on the planet and an important freshwater source for the arid regions of Africa. It is also a river that is extensively affected by anthropogenic impact. This paper aims to provide an account of the social drivers that combine to cause extensive changes in the Nilotic environments. This paper is based on extensive review of literature backed up by field research. The main focus is on the lower Nile, where the effects of anthropogenic disturbances are most prominent. We argue that the Nile Basin is characterized by interrelated and compound problems of resource management, and managing this river system effectively requires shifting the focus from water related problems to a basin wide management agenda. We contend that knowledge of environmental history is important for this agenda shift, and the idea of benefit sharing can alleviate the growing stress on this extremely sensitive arid river basin.     

River channel change during the last 50 years in the middle Yangtze River, the Jianli reach

Intensive anthropogenic disturbances have affected the channel of the middle Yangtze River since the 1950s. This paper selects the Jianli reach as an example to examine human impact on channel change in the middle Yangtze River. 1:100,000 channel distribution maps from 1951, 1961 and 1975 and 1:25,000 navigation charts from 1981 and 1997 were employed to reconstruct channel change in the study reach. The result indicates that the channel, under the constraint of levees along the riverbanks, underwent a minor widening but frequent bank failure due to susceptible bank structure and increase in water discharge. The bank failure promoted bar growth in the channel. Cross-section changes and quantitative calculations of erosion and deposition based on the DEM derived from navigation charts present a pattern of over-bank sedimentation and riverbed incision. The stage and duration of floods have increased following levee construction and bank revetment.     

Riparian reforestation and channel change: A case study of two small tributaries to Sleepers River, northeastern Vermont, USA

Measurements of two small streams in northeastern Vermont, collected in 1966 and 2004–2005, document considerable change in channel width following a period of passive reforestation. Channel widths of several tributaries to Sleepers River in Danville, VT, USA, were previously measured in 1966 when the area had a diverse patchwork of forested and nonforested riparian vegetation. Nearly 40 years later, we remeasured bed widths and surveyed large woody debris (LWD) in two of these tributaries, along 500 m of upper Pope Brook and along nearly the entire length (3 km) of an unnamed tributary (W12). Following the longitudinal survey, we collected detailed channel and riparian information for nine reaches along the same two streams. Four reaches had reforested since 1966; two reaches remained nonforested. The other three reaches have been forested since at least the 1940s. Results show that reforested reaches were significantly wider than as measured in 1966, and they are more incised than all other forested and nonforested reaches. Visual observations, cross-sectional surveys, and LWD characteristics indicate that reforested reaches continue to change in response to riparian reforestation. The three reaches with the oldest forest were widest for a given drainage area, and the nonforested reaches were substantially narrower. Our observations culminated in a conceptual model that describes a multiphase process of incision, widening, and recovery following riparian reforestation of nonforested areas. Results from this case study may help inform stream restoration efforts by providing insight into potentially unanticipated changes in channel size associated with the replanting of forested riparian buffers adjacent to small streams.     

Progress in China’s climate change study in the 20th century

Studies on the 20th century climate change in China have revealed that under the background of global warming over the past century, climate in China has also experienced significant change with mean annual temperature increased by about 0.5 °C. More reliable results for the latter part of the 20th century indicate that the largest warming occurred in Northwest China, North China and Northeast China, and the warming in winter is most significant. Although no obvious increase or decrease trends were detected for mean precipitation over China in the past half century, regional differences are very distinct. In the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, precipitation increased, while that in the Yellow River Basin markedly decreased. Studies suggest that climate change in China seems to be related not only with the internal factors such as ENSO, PDO, and the others, but also with the anthropogenic effects such as greenhouse gas emissions, and land use. The future climate change studies in China seem to be important in narrowing understanding the nature of China’s climate change and its main causes, since it is significant for projection and for impact assessment of climate change in the future.