Identifying resuspended sediment in an estuary using the 228Th/232Th activity ratio: the fate of lagoon sediment in the Bega River estuary, Australia

2000 ◽  
Vol 51 (7) ◽  
pp. 659 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary J. Hancock
Keyword(s):  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
River Flow ◽  
Activity Ratio ◽  
Sediment Resuspension ◽  
River Estuary ◽  
Low Flow ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Lagoon Sediment ◽  
Thorium Series ◽  
High River Flow

Thorium-series nuclides (228Th and 232Th) have been used to identify resuspended sediment in the Bega River estuary, south-eastern Australia. A non-conservative increase in concentration of suspended sediment of water in the vicinity of mid-estuary back-flow lagoons was associated with a decrease in the 228Th/232Th activity ratio (AR) of the suspended sediment. The lagoon sediment is characterized by a low estuarine 228Th/232Th signature, distinguishing it from freshwater suspended sediment recently delivered to the estuary, and identifying it as the likely source of the additional suspended sediment. Sediment-core 210Pb profiles show that the lagoons are accumulating sediment, presumably during high river-flow events. However this study indicates that during intervening periods of low flow, 40% of sediment deposited in the lagoons is subsequently resuspended and exported to the lower estuary, and possibly to the ocean. The utility of the 228Th/232Th AR to quantify sediment resuspension in estuaries is likely to be estuary-dependent, and is controlled by the extent of scavenging of dissolved 228Th by suspended particles.

Sources of Chlorophenolic Compounds to the Fraser River Estuary

1988 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-68 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. H. Carey ◽  
J. H. Hart
Keyword(s):  
River Flow ◽  
River Estuary ◽  
Low Flow ◽  
Fraser River ◽  
Pulp Mills ◽  
Flow Conditions ◽  
Downstream Site ◽  
Upstream Site ◽  
The North ◽  
Main River

Abstract The identity and concentrations of chlorophenolic compounds in the Fraser River estuary were determined under conditions of high and low river flow at three sites: a site upstream from the trifurcation and at downstream sites for each main river arm. Major chlorophenolics present under both flow regimes were 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (2,4,6-TCP), 2,3,4,6-tetrachlorophenol (2,3,4,6-TeCP), pentachlorophenol (PCP), tetrachloroguaiacol (TeCG) and a compound tentatively identified as 3,4,5-trichloroguaiacol (3,4,5-TCG). Under high flow conditions, concentrations of the guaiacols were higher than any of the Chlorophenols and concentrations of all five chlorophenolics appeared to correlate. Under low flow conditions, concentrations of chloroguaiacols were higher than Chlorophenols at the upstream site and at the downstream site on the Main Arm, whereas at the downstream site on the North Arm, concentrations of 2,3,4,6-TeCP and PCP were higher than the chloroguaiacols in some samples. Overall, the results indicate that pulp mills upstream from the estuary are important sources of chlorophenolics to the estuary under all flow conditions. Additional episodic inputs of 2,3,4,6-TeCP and PCP from lumber mills occur along the North Arm. When these inputs occur, they can cause the concentrations of Chlorophenols in the North Arm to exceed provisional objectives. If chloroguaiacols are included as part of the objective, concentrations of total chlorophenolics in water entering the estuary can approach and exceed these objectives, especially under low flow conditions.

Dry season suspended sediment concentration and sedimentation in the Richmond River estuary, northern NSW, Australia

Soil Research ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shahadat Hossain ◽  
Bradley D. Eyre ◽  
David McConchie
Keyword(s):  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Suspended Sediment Concentration ◽  
River Estuary ◽  
Sediment Concentration ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Low Flow ◽  
Lower Estuary ◽  
River Catchment ◽  
Tidal Circulation ◽  
Dry Seasons

Dry season suspended sediment concentration and sedimentation in the Richmond River catchment were investigated during 2 hydrological years (1994–96). Longitudinal suspended sediment transects during low flow months showed that the Richmond River estuary remained well mixed and maintained <30 mg/L suspended sediment concentration without any visible turbidity maximum zone all along the estuary. During the entire dry season, there is very little exchange of suspended sediment between the upper and lower estuaries because of very small input from the upper catchment. The estuary receives net sediment input from the continental shelf during the dry months under normal tidal circulation, and marker horizon core samples confirmed that most of these imported sediments were deposited in the lower estuary; during the 2 dry seasons, lower estuary sedimentation rate varied about 0.84 ± 0.31 cm to 0.48 ± 0.3 cm. Flushing times of the Richmond River estuary show that all point and non-point source inputs of sediments and pollutants into the estuary can be flushed out during one dry season.

scholarly journals Nutrient and phytoplankton biomass in the Amazon River shelf waters

2008 ◽  
Vol 80 (4) ◽  
pp. 703-717 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria L.S. Santos ◽  
Kátia Muniz ◽  
Benício Barros-Neto ◽  
Moacyr Araujo
Keyword(s):  
River Flow ◽  
Inorganic Nitrogen ◽  
River Estuary ◽  
Amazon River ◽  
Shelf Area ◽  
Particulate Nitrogen ◽  
Dissolved Nitrogen ◽  
Low Salinity ◽  
High Nutrient ◽  
High River Flow

The Amazon River estuary is notable at the Amazon Continental Shelf, where the presence of the large amount of water originating from the Amazon during the river's falling discharge period was made evident by the low salinity values and high nutrient levels. Even so, the presence of oceanic waters in the shelf area was significant. Dissolved organic nitrogen was the predominant species of the nitrogen cycle phases, followed by total particulate nitrogen, nitrate, ammonium and nitrite. The chlorophyll a data in the eutrophic area indicated that there is sufficient nitrogen in the area to withstand productivity, though dissolved inorganic nitrogen removal processes are faster than regeneration or mineralization. The anomalous amounts of inorganic dissolved nitrogen showed more removal than addition. The simulations with the bidimensional MAAC-2D model confirmed that high nutrient waters are displaced northwest-ward (two cores at 2.5ºN-50ºW and 4ºN-51ºW) by the stronger NBC during falling river discharge. During high river flow period these nutrient-rich lenses are distributed around 0.5ºN-48.5ºW as well as along the shallow Amazonian shelf (20m-50m depth, 1ºN-3.5ºN), as a result of the spreading of Amazon freshwater outflow.

scholarly journals APPLICATION OF A SIMPLE HYDRODYNAMIC MODEL TO ESTUARY ENTRANCE

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (32) ◽  
pp. 42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Errol J. McLean ◽  
Jon B. Hinwood
Keyword(s):  
Water Level ◽  
Hydrodynamic Model ◽  
River Flow ◽  
River Estuary ◽  
Water Levels ◽  
Tidal Range ◽  
Level Gauge ◽  
Tidal Basin ◽  
Assessment Procedure ◽  
Eastern Australia

Tidal inlets which link a tidal basin to the sea via a constricted entrance are common on the south-east Australian coast. Closure, or even significant constriction, raises water levels but restricts tidal range within the basin, while open entrances provide regular and significant tidal exchange with the ocean. A rapid assessment procedure with minimal data requirements has been shown to be informative for monitoring and a useful component of any Decision Support System set up as part of a management structure. Such a system is presented in this paper. It is based on one permanent water level gauge inside the inlet plus the use of a simple, first-order hydrodynamic model to relate the tide range, mean water level and river flow to the inlet cross sectional area. The method is tested against data from the Snowy River Estuary in south-eastern Australia but would be suitable over a range of estuaries. In addition, the framework presented can also provide a mechanism to explore conditions over the range of expected data, thus allowing better selection of model schematization and runs in estuarine systems where the use of 2 or 3D modeling can be justified.

scholarly journals Classifications of runoff and sediment data to improve the rating curve method

2017 ◽  
Vol 48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hossein Khaledian ◽  
Homayoun Faghih ◽  
Ata Amini
Keyword(s):  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
River Flow ◽  
Data Classification ◽  
Suspended Sediments ◽  
Sediment Concentration ◽  
Low Flow ◽  
Rating Curve ◽  
Sediment Rating Curve ◽  
Curve Method ◽  
Sediment Data

In this study, data classification method was evaluated to increase accuracy of estimating suspended sediment load. To achieve this objective, suspended sediment in Chehelgazi and Khalifeh-Tarkhan rivers in Kurdistan, Iran, were estimated using Sediment Rating Curve (SRC) method in three different approaches of data classification. At first, measured data were modeled without classification. Then, data based on flow statues were divided into two series as high and low flow. Eventually, based on sediment concentration, the data were divided into low and high sediment concentration. Long-term runoff and sediment data were used to calibrate rating curve model. The estimated values were compared with recorded data and the performances of these models were evaluated using statistical criteria. The results indicated an effective role of data classification to improve estimating sediment transportation by rating curve method. In one of the stations, it was observed that due to classification based on river flow and sediment concentration, model efficiency was increased about 45% and 28%, respectively. Furthermore, in case of improving efficiency of SRC method, classifying data based on flow statues was found to be more effective than sediment concentration. The results of this study can be used to improve the management of the basin by more accurately estimating the amount of suspended sediments transporting in the rivers draining to reservoirs.

Nutrient Enrichment Studies in a Coastal Plain Estuary: Phytoplankton Growth in Large-Scale, Continuous Cultures

1986 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 397-406 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher F. D'Elia ◽  
James G. Sanders ◽  
Walter R. Boynton
Keyword(s):  
Nutrient Enrichment ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
River Flow ◽  
River Estuary ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
Phytoplankton Growth ◽  
Low Flow ◽  
Late Winter ◽  
Continuous Cultures ◽  
Natural Phytoplankton

The response of phytoplanktonic growth to experimental nutrient addition in a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay estuary varied with season and nutrient availability. In bioassay experiments employing outdoor 0.5-m3 continuous cultures freshly inoculated with natural phytoplankton from the Patuxent River estuary, supplements of N, either as ammonium or nitrate, enhanced growth greatly during the low-flow, late-summer season — a period when N:P ratios of dissolved inorganic nutrient standing stocks are characteristically below 5:1 (by atoms). Growth response to N addition was very rapid (1 d after the start of an experiment), implying that phytoplankton in the bioassay were N limited when removed from the estuary. PO43− addition enhanced phytoplankton growth during the late-winter, high-flow season, when N: P ratios (as previous) typically exceed 90:1 (by atoms), but the response lagged enrichment by at least 4 d and biomass levels achieved in these cultures were less than one third of those achieved in the N-enriched cultures during the late summer. The great seasonal variability in river flow, nutrient regimes, and the response of natural phytoplankton assemblages to nutrient enrichment in the Patuxent, and similar estuaries, suggest that management strategies to improve "water quality" will need to consider N as well as P additions.

scholarly journals Watershed Suspended Sediment Supply and Potential Impacts of Dam Removals for an Estuary

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
David K. Ralston ◽  
Brian Yellen ◽  
Jonathan D. Woodruff
Keyword(s):  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
River Estuary ◽  
Dam Removal ◽  
Hudson River ◽  
Sediment Traps ◽  
Sediment Supply ◽  
Watershed Area ◽  
Natural Lakes ◽  
Sediment Deposits ◽  
Dam Removals

AbstractObservations and modeling are used to assess potential impacts of sediment releases due to dam removals on the Hudson River estuary. Watershed sediment loads are calculated based on sediment-discharge rating curves for gauges covering 80% of the watershed area. The annual average sediment load to the estuary is 1.2 Mt, of which about 0.6 Mt comes from side tributaries. Sediment yield varies inversely with watershed area, with regional trends that are consistent with substrate erodibility. Geophysical and sedimentological surveys in seven subwatersheds of the Lower Hudson were conducted to estimate the mass and composition of sediment trapped behind dams. Impoundments were classified as (1) active sediment traps, (2) run-of-river sites not actively trapping sediment, and (3) dammed natural lakes and spring-fed ponds. Based on this categorization and impoundment attributes from a dam inventory database, the total mass of impounded sediment in the Lower Hudson watershed is estimated as 4.9 ± 1.9 Mt. This represents about 4 years of annual watershed supply, which is small compared with some individual dam removals and is not practically available given current dam removal rates. More than half of dams impound drainage areas less than 1 km2, and play little role in downstream sediment supply. In modeling of a simulated dam removal, suspended sediment in the estuary increases modestly near the source during discharge events, but otherwise effects on suspended sediment are minimal. Fine-grained sediment deposits broadly along the estuary and coarser sediment deposits near the source, with transport distance inversely related to settling velocity.

scholarly journals Tidal Asymmetry in Ocean-Boundary Flux and In-Estuary Trapping of Suspended Sediment Following Watershed Storms: San Francisco Estuary, California, USA

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maureen A. Downing-Kunz ◽  
Paul A. Work ◽  
David H. Schoellhamer
Keyword(s):  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
San Francisco ◽  
Sediment Resuspension ◽  
San Francisco Estuary ◽  
Sediment Flux ◽  
Golden Gate ◽  
Storm Events ◽  
Suspended Sediment Flux ◽  
Field Campaigns ◽  
Ocean Boundary

AbstractSuspended-sediment flux at the ocean boundary of the San Francisco Estuary—the Golden Gate—was measured over a tidal cycle following peak watershed runoff from storms to the estuary in two successive years to investigate sediment transport through the estuary. Observations were repeated during low-runoff conditions, for a total of three field campaigns. Boat-based measurements of velocity and acoustic backscatter were used to calculate water and suspended-sediment flux at a location 1 km landward of the Golden Gate. Suspended-sediment concentration (SSC) and salinity data from up-estuary sensors were used to track watershed-sourced sediment plumes through the estuary. Estimates of suspended-sediment load from the watershed and net suspended-sediment flux for one up-estuary subembayment were used to infer in-estuary trapping of sediment. For both post-storm field campaigns, observations at the ocean boundary were conducted on the receding limb of the watershed hydrograph. At the ocean boundary, peak instantaneous suspended-sediment flux was tidally asymmetric and was greater on flood tides than on ebb tides for all three field campaigns, due to higher average SSC in the cross-section on flood tides. Shear-induced sediment resuspension was greater on flood tides and suggests the presence of an erodible pool outside the estuary. The storms in 2016 led to less export of discharge and sediment from the watershed and greater sediment trapping within one up-estuary subembayment compared to that observed in 2017. Results suggest that substantial trapping of watershed sediments occurred during both storm events, likely due to the formation of estuarine turbidity maxima (ETM) at different locations in the estuary. ETM locations were forced nearer the ocean boundary in 2017. Additional measurements and modeling are required to quantify the long-term sediment flux at the Golden Gate.

scholarly journals The Long-Term Effects of Land Use and Climate Changes on the Hydro-Morphology of the Reno River Catchment (Northern Italy)

Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 1831 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donatella Pavanelli ◽  
Claudio Cavazza ◽  
Stevo Lavrnić ◽  
Attilio Toscano
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Suspended Sediment ◽  
Flow Rate ◽  
Sediment Yield ◽  
River Flow ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Single Channel ◽  
Northern Italy ◽  
Lulc Changes ◽  
Suspended Sediment Yield

Anthropogenic activities, and in particular land use/land cover (LULC) changes, have a considerable effect on rivers’ flow rates and their morphologies. A representative example of those changes and resulting impacts on the fluvial environment is the Reno Mountain Basin (RMB), located in Northern Italy. Characterized by forest exploitation and agricultural production until World War II, today the RMB consists predominantly of meadows, forests and uncultivated land, as a result of agricultural land abandonment. This study focuses on the changes of the Reno river’s morphology since the 1950s, with an objective of analyzing the factors that caused and influenced those changes. The factors considered were LULC changes, the Reno river flow rate and suspended sediment yield, and local climate data (precipitation and temperature). It was concluded that LUCL changes caused some important modifications in the riparian corridor, riverbed size, and river flow rate. A 40–80% reduction in the river bed area was observed, vegetation developed in the riparian buffer strips, and the river channel changed from braided to a single channel. The main causes identified are reductions in the river flow rate and suspended sediment yield (−36% and −38%, respectively), while climate change did not have a significant effect.

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