A genetic classification of floodplains

Nanson, Gerald C.; Croke, Jacky

doi:10.1016/0169-555x(92)90039-q

Cited by 890 publications

(747 citation statements)

References 80 publications

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“…8). However, stream powers in these study reaches are considerably higher than is typical of laterally migrating systems (cf Nanson and Croke, 1992). This together with the morphology of the adjacent floodplains -which show flood chutes, abandoned channels, and backswamps -suggests that removal of these terrace forms occurs primarily through rapid channel adjustments.…”

Section: Accepted M Manuscriptmentioning

confidence: 81%

Alluvial terrace preservation in the Wet Tropics, northeast Queensland, Australia

et al. 2015

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Alluvial terraces provide a record of aggradation and incision and are studied to understand river response to changes in climate, tectonic activity, sea level, and factors internal to the river system. Terraces form in all climatic regions and in a range of geomorphic settings; however, relatively few studies have been undertaken in tectonically stable settings in the tropics. The preservation of alluvial terraces in a valley is driven by lateral channel adjustments, vertical incision, aggradation, and channel stability, processes that can be further understood through examining catchment force-resistance frameworks. This study maps and classifies terraces using soil type, surface elevation, sedimentology, and optically stimulated luminescence dating across five tropical catchments in northeast Queensland, Australia. This allowed for the identification of two terraces across the study catchments (T1, T2).The T1 terrace was abandoned ~13.9 ka with its subsequent removal occurring until ~7.4 ka. Abandonment of the T2 terrace occurred ~4.9 ka with removal occurring until ~1.2 ka. Differences in the spatial preservation of these terraces were described using an index of terrace preservation (TPI). Assessments of terrace remnant configuration highlighted three main types of terraces: paired, unpaired, and disconnected, indicating the importance of different processes driving preservation.Regional-scale variability in TPI was not strongly correlated with catchment-scale surrogate variables for drivers of terrace erosion and resistance. However, catchmentspecific relationships between TPI and erosion-resistance variables were evident and are used here to explain the dominant processes driving preservation in these tropical settings. This study provides an important insight into terrace preservation in the tectonically stable, humid tropics and provides a framework for future research linking the timing of fluvial response to palaeoclimate change. A C C E P T E D M A N U S C R I P T ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT IntroductionAlluvial terraces are topographic landforms that result from floodplain abandonment when a river incises, therefore providing records of river aggradation and incision (Leopold et al., 1964). Terraces have formed in all global regions and are commonly studied to understand how rivers have responded to the combined effects of changes in external controls including climate, tectonics, and sea level (Merritts et al., 1994;Macklin et al., 2002;Bridgland and Westaway, 2008) and in internal controls, such as catchment morphology (Coulthard et al., 2005) and reach-specific conditions (Houben, 2003).Terraces are generally identified in the landscape using a range of techniques including soil properties (see reviews in Birkeland, 1990;Huggett, 1998), topographic data (Pazzaglia and Gardner, 1993;Jones et al., 2007), aerial and satellite imagery (Litchfield and Berryman, 2005), with correlations further aided by sedimentology and dating (Stokes et al., 2012). The use of soil characteristics to classify terrace...

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Section: Accepted M Manuscriptmentioning

confidence: 81%

Alluvial terrace preservation in the Wet Tropics, northeast Queensland, Australia

et al. 2015

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“…where W =channel width, has also been associated with changes in channel planform (Carson, 1984;Ferguson, 1987;Nanson and Croke, 1992) and lateral migration (Nanson and Hickin, 1986). Substituting the relationship between channel width and the square root of dominant discharge (Ferguson, 1987;Knighton, 1998), W = aQ 0.5 , into the definition of specific stream power yields an approximation of specific stream power of the form (Bledsoe, 1999):…”

Section: Flow Energymentioning

confidence: 99%

Statistical analysis of lateral migration of the Rio Grande, New Mexico

2005

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The lateral migration rates of alluvial rivers are affected by changes in water and sediment regimes. The Rio Grande downstream from Cochiti Dam exhibits spatial and temporal variability in lateral movement rates documented since 1918. A tremendous database exists that documents planform, bed material size, channel geometry, and water and sediment regimes. A statistical analysis reveals that migration rates primarily decreased with decreasing flow energy (R 2 N 0.50, p b0.0001). The addition of a second parameter describing total channel width increased the explained variance to N 60%. The findings show that lateral movement increases with increasing flow energy and with degree of braiding. D

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“…For many large river (catchment >1000 km 2 ), the floodplain type and associated processes (e.g. Nanson & Croke, 1992) can be derived from simple topographic information. For smaller rivers this is often difficult (e.g.…”

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confidence: 99%

Fluvial architecture of Belgian river systems in contrasting environments: implications for reconstructing the sedimentation history

Notebaert

Houbrechts

Verstraeten

et al. 2011

Netherlands Journal of Geosciences

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Accurate dating is necessary to get insight in the temporal variations in sediment deposition in floodplains. The interpretation of such dates is however dependent on the fluvial architecture of the floodplain. In this study we discuss the fluvial architecture of three contrasting Belgian catchments (Dijle, Geul and Amblève catchment) and how this influences the dating possibilities of net floodplain sediment storage. Although vertical aggradation occurred in all three floodplains during the last part of the Holocene, they differ in the importance of lateral accretion and vertical aggradation during the entire Holocene. Holocene floodplain aggradation is the dominant process in the Dijle catchment. Lateral reworking of the floodplain sediments by river meandering was limited to a part of the floodplain, resulting in stacked point bar deposits. The fluvial architecture allows identifying vertical aggradation without erosional hiatuses. Results show that trends in vertical floodplain aggradation in the Dijle catchment are mainly related to land use changes. In the other two catchments, lateral reworking was the dominant process, and channel lag and point bar deposits occur over the entire floodplain width. Here, tracers were used to date the sediment dynamics: lead from metal mining in the Geul and iron slag from ironworks in the Amblève catchment. These methods allow the identification of two or three discrete periods, but their spatial extent and variations is identified in a continuous way. The fluvial architecture and the limitation in dating with tracers hampered the identification of dominant environmental changes for sediment dynamics in both catchments. Dating methods which provide only discrete point information, like radiocarbon or OSL dating, are best suited for fluvial systems which contain continuous aggradation profiles. Spatially more continuous dating methods, e.g. through the use of tracers, allow to reconstruct past surfaces and allow to reconstruct reworked parts of the floodplain. As such they allow a better reconstruction of past sedimentation rates in systems with important lateral reworking.

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A genetic classification of floodplains

Cited by 890 publications

References 80 publications

Alluvial terrace preservation in the Wet Tropics, northeast Queensland, Australia

Alluvial terrace preservation in the Wet Tropics, northeast Queensland, Australia

Statistical analysis of lateral migration of the Rio Grande, New Mexico

Fluvial architecture of Belgian river systems in contrasting environments: implications for reconstructing the sedimentation history

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