Details:

Journal Title:
Earth Surface Processes and Landforms
Personal Author:
Diehl, Rebecca M. ; Underwood, Kristen L. ; Triantafillou, Shayla P. ; Ross, Don S. ; Drago, Stephanie ; ... More +
Diehl, Rebecca M. ; Underwood, Kristen L. ; Triantafillou, Shayla P. ; Ross, Don S. ; Drago, Stephanie ; Wemple, Beverley C. Less -
Sea Grant Program:
LCSG (Lake Champlain Sea Grant)
Description:
The capacity for floodplains to capture sediment and filter pollutants is spatially variable and depends on the complex interactions of geomorphic, geologic, and hydrologic variables that operate at multiple scales. In this study, we integrated watershed‐scale and local assessments to improve our understanding of floodplain depositional patterns. We developed a dataset of event‐scale observations of sediment and phosphorus deposition rates distributed at 129 plots across large environmental gradients of floodplain topography, valley geometry, and watershed characteristics in the Lake Champlain Basin, Vermont. Plot‐scale observations were used to evaluate the cross‐scale influence of environmental factors and were summarized into site‐scale averages to explore regional trends. Consistent with other studies, floodplain deposition generally scaled with drainage area, but trends were longitudinally discontinuous and depended on variations in valley width and slope. While variability in deposition patterns at the watershed‐scale was large (average of 2.0 (0.2–9.8) kg sediment m−2 yr−1; average of 1.4 (0.2–6.5) g phosphorus m−2 yr−1), the range in deposition rates locally across a floodplain was greater (average of 4.6 (0.06–21.7) kg sediment m−2 yr−1; average of 6.4 (0.1–41.1) g phosphorus m−2 yr−1). Local variables that described the proximity to water and sediment sources, and frequency with which the plot was activated by a flood, had the greatest relative contribution to boosted regression tree models of phosphorus deposition rates, highlighting the importance of river–floodplain connectivity for floodplain functioning and the profound impact of human activities that limit such connectivity. Patterns identified in our study may guide prioritization of restoration and conservation practices designed to capture sediment and phosphorus on floodplains.
Keywords:
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Earth-Surface Processes Earth And Planetary Sciences (miscellaneous) Geography, Planning And Development
Source:
Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 48(4), 801-816
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.5519
ISSN:
0197-9337;1096-9837;
Format:
PDF
Publisher:
Wiley
Document Type:
Journal Article
License:
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Rights Information:
CC BY
Compliance:
Submitted
Main Document Checksum:
[+]
urn:sha256:decda9a9b789178c6ff7467f85d55ed16655a90b213611fb73900c80f6a776ec
Download URL:
https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/55365/noaa_55365_DS1.pdf
File Type:

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