The Importance of Organic Content to Fractal Floc Properties in Estuarine Surface Waters: Insights From Video, LISST, and Pump Sampling

To better understand the nature of flocs of varying organic content in estuarine surface waters, Laser in situ Scattering and Transmissometry, video settling, and pump sampling were deployed in the York River estuary. A new in situ method was developed to simultaneously solve the floc fractal dimension (F), primary particle size (d p ), and primary particle density (ρ p ) by fitting a simple fractal model to observations of effective floc density (∆ρ) as a function of floc diameter (d f ), while ensuring that the integrated particle size distribution was consistent with measurements of bulk apparent density (ρ a ). When fractal fits were statistically justified, application of the above methods showed the bulk fraction of organic matter (f org ) to be well correlated to multiple floc properties. As f org increased, d p and ρ a also increased, while ρ p , total suspended solids (TSS), and median floc size decreased. Notably for microflocs, neither F nor ∆ρ was significantly related to either f org or TSS. This indicates that organic matter may partially displace water content within microflocs without fundamentally changing the flocs’ inorganic structure. When pooling multiple samples, a marked decrease in F was seen at the transition to macroflocs, and most strongly for high f org cases. This suggested that settling velocities \u3e_ ~1 mm/s may produce turbulent stresses that tend to tear macroflocs apart. This study also found that when the fractal theory held, ρ p had a near 1:1 correlation with the bulk dry density of filtered TSS, implying that primary particles are tightly bound aggregates of combined mineral and organic component

Quantifying measures to limit wind driven resuspension of sediments for improvement of the ecological quality in some shallow Dutch lakes

Although phosphorus loadings are considered the main pressure for most shallow lakes, wind-driven resuspension can cause additional problems for these aquatic ecosystems. We quantified the potential effectiveness of measures to reduce the contribution of resuspended sediments, resulting from wind action, to the overall light attenuation for three comparable shallow peat lakes with poor ecological status in the Netherlands: Loosdrecht, Nieuwkoop, and Reeuwijk (1.8–2.7 m depth, 1.6–2.5 km fetch). These measures are: 1. wave reducing barriers, 2. water level fluctuations, 3. capping of the sediment with sand, and 4. combinations of above. Critical shear stress of the sediments for resuspension (Vcrit), size distribution, and optical properties of the suspended material were quantified in the field (June 2009) and laboratory. Water quality monitoring data (2002–2009) showed that light attenuation by organic suspended matter in all lakes is high. Spatial modeling of the impact of these measures showed that in Lake Loosdrecht limiting wave action can have significant effects (reductions from 6% exceedance to 2% exceedance of Vcrit), whereas in Lake Nieuwkoop and Lake Reeuwijk this is less effective. The depth distribution and shape of Lake Nieuwkoop and Lake Reeuwijk limit the role of wind-driven resuspension in the total suspended matter concentration. Although the lakes are similar in general appearance (origin, size, and depth range) measures suitable to improve their ecological status differ. This calls for care when defining the programme of measures to improve the ecological status of a specific lake based on experience from other lakes.

Sediment dispersal in the northwestern Adriatic Sea

Author Posting. © American Geophysical Union, 2008. This article is posted here by permission of American Geophysical Union for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Journal of Geophysical Research 113 (2008): C11S03, doi:10.1029/2006JC003868.Sediment dispersal in the Adriatic Sea was evaluated using coupled three-dimensional circulation and sediment transport models, representing conditions from autumn 2002 through spring 2003. The calculations accounted for fluvial sources, resuspension by waves and currents, and suspended transport. Sediment fluxes peaked during southwestward Bora wind conditions that produced energetic waves and strengthened the Western Adriatic Coastal Current. Transport along the western Adriatic continental shelf was nearly always to the south, except during brief periods when northward Sirocco winds reduced the coastal current. Much of the modeled fluvial sediment deposition was near river mouths, such as the Po subaqueous delta. Nearly all Po sediment remained in the northern Adriatic. Material from rivers that drain the Apennine Mountains traveled farther before deposition than Po sediment, because it was modeled with a lower settling velocity. Fluvial sediment delivered to areas with high average bed shear stress was more highly dispersed than material delivered to more quiescent areas. Modeled depositional patterns were similar to observed patterns that have developed over longer timescales. Specifically, modeled Po sediment accumulation was thickest near the river mouth with a very thin deposit extending to the northeast, consistent with patterns of modern sediment texture in the northern Adriatic. Sediment resuspended from the bed and delivered by Apennine Rivers was preferentially deposited on the northern side of the Gargano Peninsula, in the location of thick Holocene accumulation. Deposition here was highest during Bora winds when convergences in current velocities and off-shelf flux enhanced delivery of material to the midshelf.The authors are grateful for funding and support from the Office of Naval Research’s Coastal Geosciences and Marine Modeling programs, the U.S. Geological Survey, and NATO’s SACLANT-CEN

The dynamics of expanding mangroves in New Zealand

In contrast to the global trend of mangrove decline, New Zealand mangroves are rapidly expanding, facilitated by elevated sediment inputs in coastal waters as a consequence of large-scale land use changes following European settlement. New Zealand mangroves are at the southern limit of the global mangrove extent, which limits the tree height of Avicennia marina var. australasica, the only mangrove species present. Mangroves in New Zealand thrive in the sheltered environments of infilling drowned river valleys with abundant supply of fine terrigenous sediments, showing various stages of mangrove succession and expansion dynamics. Bio-physical interactions and carbon dynamics in these expanding temperate mangrove systems show similarities to, but also differ from those in tropical mangrove forests, for instance due to the limited height and complexity of the mangrove communities. Likewise, ecosystem services provided by New Zealand mangroves deviate from those offered by tropical mangroves. In particular, the association of mangrove expansion with the accumulation of (the increased supply of) fine sediments and the consequent change of estuarine ecosystems, has provoked a negative perception of mangrove expansion and subsequently led to mangrove clearance. Over recent decades, a body of knowledge has been developed regarding the planning and decision making relating to mangrove removal, yet there are still effects that are unknown, for example with respect to the post-clearance recovery of the original sandflat ecosystems. In this chapter we discuss the dynamics of New Zealand’s expanding mangroves from a range of viewpoints, with the aim of elucidating the possible contributions of expanding mangroves to coastal ecosystem services, now and in the future. This chapter also reviews current policies and practice regarding mangrove removal in New Zealand and addresses the (un)known effects of mangrove clearance. These combined insights may contribute to the development of integrated coastal management strategies that recognise the full potential of expanding mangrove ecosystems

Stratification effects by cohesive and noncohesive sediment.

Introduction The environment in many coastal and estuarine areas is characterized by the presence of large amounts of fine-grained cohesive and noncohesive sediment. The transport and fate of these sediments determine the bathymetry and stability of these areas, affect its water quality and ecological health through turbidity levels and adherence of contaminants and sediment composition, and are a nuisance to port authorities, who are often forced to undertake frequent maintenance dredging operations to safeguard navigation. Farther offshore, for instance, on continental shelves, large transports of sediment are encountered when the slopes of these shelves destabilize, generating huge turbidity currents. Nowadays, engineers and scientists commonly use threedimensional numerical models to study and predict the transport and fate of these fine-grained sediments. An important issue in such models is the interaction between the suspended sediment and the turbulent water movement. The present paper describes a study on this interaction in open-channel flow, discussing its implications and modeling requirements. The water-sediment mixture is treated as a single-phase fluid in which all particles follow the turbulence movements except for their settling velocity. Uittenbogaard [1994] In this study, distinction is made between the behavior of noncohesive and cohesive sediments. Noncohesive particles form a rigid bed upon deposition, at which turbulence production is always possible. As a result, an equilibrium condition exists, also referred to as capacity flow, which is the basis of many sediment transport formulae. In the case of cohesiv

A heuristic formula for turbulence-induced flocculation of cohesive sediment

This paper presents new measurements on the settling velocity of mud flocs in the Lower Sea Scheldt, Belgium, and compares the results with data obtained previously in the Tamar estuary, UK. The data show that the flocs are fairly compact with a fractal dimension of about 2.2, which is indicative for reaction limited aggregation processes, characteristic in dynamic aquatic systems with large tidal flow velocities and high SPM (suspended particulate matter) concentrations. The data also reveal a fairly small dependency of the settling velocity from SPM concentrations, consistently much smaller than earlier data published in literature. Furthermore, a simple explicit formulation is proposed for the settling velocity of cohesive sediment in estuaries and coastal seas. It is derived from an analytical solution of a Lagrangean flocculation model, which accounts for turbulence-induced aggregation and floc break-up. Also the effects of variations in SPM and of a limited residence time of the flocs in the turbulent water column are included. The model has been calibrated against data from settling velocity measurements carried out in the Tamar estuary. Values of the measured settling velocity vary between 0.5 and 5 mm s[-1] at SPM-values between 0.05 and 8 gl[-1]. Using the tuned coefficients, the model describes the observations satisfactory, with an overall relative standard deviation of 30%. Also, the well-known and observed increase in settling velocity with turbulent shear stress at low stresses and the opposite trend at high stresses is described properly. Next, the model is applied to the new data obtained in the Lower Sea Scheldt estuary, again comparing favourably with overall relative standard deviations of 30-50%. It appeared that the coefficients of the model can be determined from independent measurements, but two of them have to be determined by trial and error, for which a simple procedure is proposed