Dynamic characteristics of saltwater intrusion in the Pearl River Estuary, China

Liu, Bingjun; Liao, Yeying; Shulan, Yan; Yan, Hengheng

doi:10.1007/s11069-017-3010-4

Cited by 23 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…Numerical models have been widely used to investigate salt transport in deltas and estuaries (Aristizabal & Chant, 2013; Hong et al., 2020; Liu et al., 2017; Lyu & Zhu, 2018; Shen et al., 2018; Tian, 2019). Generally, the boundaries of these models extend from the downstream portion of the drainage basin, where the major fraction of the river flow is naturally collected, to the coastal region.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Saltwater Intrusion in a Mediterranean Delta Under a Changing Climate

et al. 2021

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Coastal zones are dynamic and sensitive to changing forcing conditions related to climate variability, such as flooding and droughts, storm surges, and sea-level changes. Among coastal systems, deltas and estuaries are characterized by complex dynamics between fresh water of continental origin and salt waters (Horner-Devine et al., 2015; Valle-Levinson, 2010). Moreover, deltas are impacted by human activities and in some cases the anthropic control on the natural environment can override the climatic signal, forcing deltas toward a man-made river-dominated system (Maselli & Trincardi, 2013). One of the major problems affecting deltas and estuaries, especially during drought conditions, is the upstream extent of the mixing zone between freshwater and saltwater. This would lead to a consequent increase of the salt content in aquifers and surface waters. Saltwater intrusion (SWI) in rivers can hinder the use of surface water for irrigation or drinking purposes and can threaten the livelihood of coastal communities that rely on fresh water supplies for their livelihood. Furthermore, when there is contact between the channel bed and the underlying coastal aquifer, saltwater can intrude and lead to salinization of soils (Werner et al., 2013; White & Kaplan, 2017). A variety of factors drives SWI on different spatial and temporal scales. These can be natural (sea level, storm surges, hurricanes, climate fluctuations, and subsidence) or anthropogenic (land drainage, exploitation of coastal aquifers, reduction in freshwater discharge from hydropower production and irrigation, interbasin diversions and other hydraulic infrastructures, changes in land-use within the drainage basin and channel deepening), as well as combinations of both (White & Kaplan, 2017). Therefore, understanding the processes controlling SWI and their effects under climate change is crucial for defining proper coastal mitigation and management strategies.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Saltwater Intrusion in a Mediterranean Delta Under a Changing Climate

et al. 2021

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“…These phase angles would correspond to between 1.5 and 3 hr for semidiurnal variability and to approximately 3 hr (between 1.5 and 5 hr) for diurnal variability. Previous studies for the dry season in the Modaomen have identified a time lag in the response of L s of 5 hr relative to the high slack water (Gong & Shen, 2011) and 4 hr (Liu et al., 2017). From May onwards, SSH and L s are close to be in phase (i.e., phase angle close to zero and arrows pointing right) for both semidiurnal and diurnal signal, which implies that L s responds more quickly and almost instantaneously to changes in SSH at these periodicities.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 98%

Multiscale Temporal Response of Salt Intrusion to Transient River and Ocean Forcing

et al. 2022

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Salt intrusion in surface waters endangers freshwater availability, influences water quality, and affects estuarine ecosystem services with high economic and social values. Salt transport and the resulting salinity distributions result from the non‐linear interactions between salt and water dynamics. Estuaries are often considered under (quasi)‐steady assumption or by focusing on specific timescales. Our understanding of their temporal multiscale response to transient forcing is limited, which hinders the implementation of effective mitigation strategies. We apply wavelet analyses to quantify the variability of salt intrusion from hourly to seasonal timescales and unravel the temporal variability of its response across scales. We focus on an estuary that undergoes significant transient forcing, the Modaomen estuary in the Pearl River Delta, and apply the wavelet analyses to year‐long data generated by a coastal ocean numerical model. Our results show that this estuary responds to changes in tidal and riverine forcing throughout the year over interwoven timescales. Our results highlight the temporal variability of the salt intrusion response time both within a given regime and for the transition between regimes. They also suggest that tides control the response time more strongly than river discharge, even though river discharge determines the magnitude of the salt intrusion, and thus modulates the evolution of the salt intrusion response time. We propose a broadly applicable framework to calculate response times with simple data. These results can provide a first‐order guidance for design and implementation of estuarine management strategies and mitigation measures that ensure water access and facilitate sustainable development.

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“…Traditionally, temperature-salinity (T-S) relationships have been used to distinguish the characteristics of marine water masses for a long time (Helland-Hansen and Nansen, 1926;Harvey, 1982), and are still widely used recently (Xie et al, 2011;Liu et al, 2017;Karati et al, 2019). However, such traditional method has some limitations to trace the mixing of water masses because the salinity and temperature are not the characteristic of water itself (Bigg and Rohling, 2000;Lao et al, 2022a).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, the Kuroshio intrusion into the SCS formed a strong front due to interactions with northern SCS water, which has supplied external high Chl a and nutrients in the subsurface SCS water and increasing phytoplankton productivity in the frontal area (Deshpande et al, 2013;Wang et al, 2017;Xu et al, 2018). In addition, there are varying degrees of seawater backflow to the PRE each year (Liu et al, 2017;Liu et al, 2019). In the northern SCS, the intrusion of the Kuroshio subsurface water to the continental slope was identified by using seawater d 18 O (Chen et al, 2020b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using dual water isotopes to quantify the mixing of water masses in the Pearl River Estuary and the adjacent northern South China Sea

et al. 2022

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The mixing of different water masses is important for local physical and biogeochemical processes as well as for ecosystems in the ocean. In this study, a new dataset of stable water isotopes (δD and δ18O) combined with temperature–salinity profiles was used to quantitatively understand the mixing of water masses in the Pearl River Estuary (PRE) and the adjacent northern South China Sea (SCS). Based on hydrographic characteristics and the isotope–salinity relationships in the water column, three water masses, namely, low isotopic values (<1.5‰ for δD and <0‰ for δ18O) with a salinity of <33.20 for PRE water (PREW), high isotopic values (>2.0‰ for δD and >0.6‰ for δ18O) with a salinity of >34.60 for SCS Kuroshio Branch (SCSKB), and higher isotopic values (>3.0‰ for δD and <0.4‰ for δ18O) with a salinity of >33.30 for SCS water (SCSW), were identified in the PRE and the adjacent SCS. The mixing of the three water masses in the PRE and the adjacent SCS was mainly from SCSW (71%), followed by the SCSKB (23%), and the proportion of PREW only accounted for 6%. However, different water layers and regions are affected differently by these three water masses. The surface water is mainly influenced by the PREW, whereas the subsurface water is mainly influenced by the intrusion of SCSKB (100–300 m). The mixing process of water masses in the west side of the study area (<115°E) is mainly contributed by the SCSW (86%), whereas the contributions of PREW and SCSKB are only 4% and 10%, respectively. By contrast, the mixing of water masses in the east side (>115°E) is mainly influenced by the Kuroshio intrusion (50%). This study reveals that dual water isotopes are exquisitely sensitive to determine the complex hydrological process in the PRE and the adjacent SCS, and water masses on marine environment should deserve more attention.

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Dynamic characteristics of saltwater intrusion in the Pearl River Estuary, China

Cited by 23 publications

References 46 publications

Saltwater Intrusion in a Mediterranean Delta Under a Changing Climate

Saltwater Intrusion in a Mediterranean Delta Under a Changing Climate

Multiscale Temporal Response of Salt Intrusion to Transient River and Ocean Forcing

Using dual water isotopes to quantify the mixing of water masses in the Pearl River Estuary and the adjacent northern South China Sea

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