Large Rivers: Geomorphology and Management

Large Rivers: Geomorphology and Management explores an important topic in geomorphology and sedimentology: the form and function of major rivers. Our knowledge of the big rivers of the world is limited. It is currently difficult to recognise large rivers of the past from relict sedimentary deposits or to structure management policies for long international rivers.  This exciting book brings together a set of papers on large rivers of the world, as a unique introduction to a demanding subject. The book includes thirty chapters and is organised into three sections. The first part is on the environmental requirements for creating and maintaining a major river system. The second is a collection of case studies on 14 large rivers from different continents, covering a range of physical environments. The third section includes chapters on the measurement and management of large rivers.  First book to offer in a single volume state-of-the-art knowledge on management and geomorphology of large rivers of the world A pioneering study, pushing the boundaries of our knowledge related to big rivers Includes comprehensive case studies covering the major large rivers of the world including Amazon, Mississippi, Nile, Congo, Indus, and Mekong Written by a leading team of distinguished, international contributors Large Rivers: Geomorphology and Management is essential reading for postgraduate students and researchers in fluvial geomorphology, hydrology, sedimentary geology, and river management. It is also of relevance to engineers and environmental consultants in the private and public sectors working on major rivers of the world.

Table of Contents:
Preface xvii List of Contributors xix 1 Introduction 1 Avijit Gupta 1.1 A Book on Large Rivers 1 1.2 What is a Large River? 2 1.3 The Book and its Content 2 PART I: BACKGROUND 2 Geology of Large River Systems 7 Sampat K. Tandon and Rajiv Sinha 2.1 Introduction 7 2.2 Tectonic Settings of Large River Systems 8 2.3 Complexity of Drainage Types 11 2.4 Large Rivers – Climatic Settings and Climatic Variability 13 2.5 Modern Large Rivers – Hydrology and Sediment Dispersal 15 2.6 Variability in the Alluvial Architecture of Large River Systems 17 2.7 Growth and Development of Large River Systems 21 2.8 Duration of Large River Systems and the Rock Record 22 2.9 Sea Level, Tectonic and Climatic Controls on the Large River Systems 22 2.10 Concluding Remarks 24 3 Hydrology and Discharge 29 Ellen E. Wohl 3.1 Hydrology of Large River Basins 29 3.2 Large Rivers of the Equatorial Regions 32 3.3 Large Rivers of the Drylands 35 3.4 Rivers of the Mid-latitudes 37 3.5 Rivers Draining South from the Himalaya 37 3.6 Rivers of East and Southeast Asia 38 3.7 High-latitude Rivers 39 3.8 Summary 40 4 Transcontinental Moving and Storage: The Orinoco and Amazon Rivers Transfer the Andes to the Atlantic 45 Robert H. Meade 4.1 Introduction 45 4.2 Andean Sources and Alluvial Storage 45 4.3 Orinoco 47 4.4 Amazon 49 4.5 The Amazon Goes to Sea 57 4.6 Coda 59 5 Greatest Floods and Largest Rivers 65 Victor R. Baker 5.1 Introduction 65 5.2 Historical Background 65 5.3 Terrestrial Glacial Megafl oods 66 5.4 Extraterrestrial Megafl oods and Megarivers 71 5.5 Conclusion 72 6 Classifi cation, Architecture, and Evolution of Large-River Deltas 75 Kazuaki Hori and Yoshiki Saito 6.1 Introduction 75 6.2 Defi nition of a Delta and Delta Components 77 6.3 Classifi cation of Deltas 79 6.4 Morphology and Sediment 82 6.5 Delta Evolution 87 6.6 Problems of Sediment Supply 90 6.7 Concluding Remarks 91 7 Sedimentology and Stratigraphy of Large River Deposits: Recognition in the Ancient Record, and Distinction from 'Incised Valley Fills' 97 Christopher R. Fielding 7.1 Introduction 97 7.2 Sedimentology and Stratigraphy of Modern Big Rivers 100 7.3 Sedimentology and Stratigraphy of Ancient Big Rivers 103 7.4 Discussion: Ancient Big River Deposits vs ‘Incised Valley Fills' 105 7.5 Conclusion 107 PART II: CASE STUDIES 8 Effects of Tectonism, Climate Change, and Sea-level Change on the Form and Behaviour of the Modern Amazon River and its Floodplain 115 Leal A.K. Mertes and Thomas Dunne 8.1 Background 115 8.2 Amazon Basin Characteristics 116 8.3 Lithologic and Tectonic Infl uences on the Modern Amazon 117 8.4 Infl uence of Climate Change on the Amazon River 132 8.5 Infl uence of Sea-Level Changes on the Amazon River and Floodplain 135 8.6 Conclusion 139 9 The Mississippi River System 145 James C. Knox 9.1 Introduction 145 9.2 Cenozoic Drainage Evolution 145 9.3 Infl uence of Quaternary Glaciations 148 9.4 Proglacial Lakes and Extreme Floods 150 9.5 Response of the Lower Mississippi Valley to Upper Valley Glaciation and Flooding 151 9.6 The Mississippi River System during the Holocene 153 9.7 Morphology of the Mississippi River 162 9.8 Modern Hydrology 167 9.9 The Mississippi River System: Summary and Outlook 174 10 The Colorado River 183 John C. Schmidt 10.1 Introduction 183 10.2 Physiography 186 10.3 Age of the River 189 10.4 Gradient, Valley Width, and Channel Form in the Colorado Plateau 191 10.5 Hydrology: Pre-dam 193 10.6 Hydrology: Post-dam 196 10.7 Pre-Dam and Post-Dam Sediment Yield and Sediment Transport 200 10.8 Channel Adjustment and Change During the Twentieth Century 203 10.9 Implications of Hydrology, Sediment Transport, Channel Change, and Temperature to the Endemic Fishery 211 10.10 Environmental Management of the Modern River 215 10.11 The Future 217 10.12 Conclusion 219 11 The Lena River: Hydromorphodynamic Features in a Deep Permafrost Zone 225 Francois Costard and Emmanuele Gautier 11.1 Introduction 225 11.2 Description of the Lena Drainage Basin 225 11.3 A Periglacial Environment 227 11.4 Floodplain, Delta and Periglacial Landforms 227 11.5 Fluvial Dynamics and Landforms 227 11.6 Thermal Erosion and its Impact on the Fluvial Forms 231 11.7 Impact of Climatic Change on the Hydrosystem 232 11.8 Conclusion 232 12 The Danube: Morphology, Evolution and Environmental Issues 235 Denes Loczy 12.1 Introduction 235 12.2 Water and Sediment 235 12.3 Headwaters of the Danube 238 12.4 The Danube: a Description 239 12.5 The Danube Delta 242 12.6 The Evolution of the Valley of the Danube 245 12.7 Human Impacts 254 13 The Nile: Evolution, Quaternary River Environments and Material Fluxes 261 Jamie C. Woodward, Mark G. Macklin, Michael D. Krom and Martin A. J. Williams 13.1 Introduction 261 13.2 Nile Basin River Environments 263 13.3 Early Origins and the Late Miocene and Pliocene Nile 265 13.4 The Late Pleistocene and Holocene Nile 268 13.5 Records of Nile River Behaviour in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea 273 13.6 The Modern Nile: Hydrology and Geomorphology 274 13.7 The Suspended Sediment Budget 279 13.8 The Nile Delta and the Eastern Mediterranean 284 13.9 River Basin Management and Global Change 287 14 The Congo River, Central Africa 293 Jurgen Runge 14.1 Introduction 293 14.2 The Course of the Congo River 293 14.3 Geology and Geomorphology of the Congo Basin 299 14.4 Evolution of the Congo River 302 14.5 The Flow Regime of the Congo 303 14.6 Solid, Suspended, and Dissolved Load 303 14.7 The Congo Mouth and the Submarine Canyon 306 14.8 The Congo River and its Economic Importance 307 14.9 Conclusion 308 15 The Zambezi River 311 Andy E. Moore, Fenton P.D. (Woody) Cotterill, Mike P.L. Main and Hugh B. Williams 15.1 Introduction 311 15.2 The Zambezi River System 313 15.3 Hydrology 317 15.4 Ecological Impact of Major Dams 320 15.5 Evolution of the Zambezi River System 321 15.6 Drainage Evolution and Speciation 328 15.7 Cultural and Economic Aspects 330 15.8 Conclusion 330 16 The Geographic, Geological and Oceanographic Setting of the Indus River 333 Asif Inam, Peter D. Clift, Liviu Giosan, Ali Rashid Tabrez, Muhammad Tahir, Muhammad Moazam Rabbani and Muhammad Danish 16.1 Introduction 333 16.2 The Drainage Basin 334 16.3 The River 335 16.4 Evolution of the Indus River 335 16.5 The Indus Delta 336 16.6 Submarine Indus System 338 16.7 Water Management 339 16.8 The Indus Dolphins 341 16.9 Environmental Changes 342 16.10 Human-Induced Changes in the Indus Delta 342 16.11 Conclusion 344 17 The Ganga River 347 Indra B. Singh 17.1 Introduction 347 17.2 Hydrology 347 17.3 Water Quality 353 17.4 Sediment Transfer in the Ganga 353 17.5 Mineralogy and Geochemistry of Sediments 355 17.6 Heavy Metals and Pollutants in the Sediment 356 17.7 The Plain and the River 356 17.8 The Delta 362 17.9 A Summary of Current Geomorphic Processes 365 17.10 Quaternary Evolution of the Ganga 366 17.11 Utilization of the River and Associated Problems 367 18 Erosion and Weathering in the Brahmaputra River System 373 Sunil K. Singh 18.1 Introduction 373 18.2 The Brahmaputra River System 373 18.3 Geology of the Basin 375 18.4 Hydrology 377 18.5 Floods in the Brahmaputra 378 18.6 Characteristics of the Brahmaputra Channel 381 18.7 Erosion and Weathering 382 18.8 Sediment Yield or Erosion Rates in the Various Zones 386 18.9 Chemical Weathering and Erosion 386 18.10 Bed Load and Weathering Intensity 389 18.11 Control of Physical and Chemical Erosion in the Brahmaputra Basin 389 18.12 Conclusion 391 19 The Brahmaputra-Jamuna River, Bangladesh 395 James L. Best, Philip J. Ashworth, Maminul H. Sarker and Julie E. Roden 19.1 Background 395 19.2 Channel Scale Morphology and Historical Changes in the Course of the Brahmaputra-Jamuna River 399 19.3 Bedform Types and Dynamics 405 19.4 Bifurcations, Offtakes and Confl uences 413 19.5 Floodplain Sedimentation 414 19.6 Sedimentology of the Jamuna River 418 19.7 Applied Geomorphology and Engineering in the Jamuna River 423 19.8 Summary 427 20 The Mekong River: Morphology, Evolution, Management 435 Avijit Gupta 20.1 Introduction 435 20.2 The Mekong Basin 437 20.4 The Mekong Over Time: The Geomorphic History 449 20.5 Erosion and Sediment Transfer 450 20.6 The Mekong and its Basin: Resource and Management 451 20.7 Conclusion 453 21 Dynamic Hydrology and Geomorphology of the Yangtze River 457 Zhongyuan Chen, Kaiqin Xu and Masataka Watanabe 21.1 Basin Geology and Landforms 457 21.2 River Morphology 460 21.3 Storage and Transfer of Water and Sediment 460 21.4 Large-scale River Management – Three Gorges Dam and the Planned Water Transfer 467 PART III: MEASUREMENT AND MANAGEMENT 22 The Nile River: Geology, Hydrology, Hydraulic Society 471 M. Gordon Wolman and Robert F. Giegengack 22.1 Introduction 471 22.2 Physiography 471 22.3 Geologic History 475 22.4 Climate and Climate Change 477 22.5 Hydrology 481 22.6 A Unique Record 484 22.7 The Nile and Hydraulic Civilizations 485 23 Patterns and Controls on Historical Channel Change in the Willamette River, Oregon, USA 491 Jennifer Rose Wallick, Gordon E. Grant, Stephen T. Lancaster, John P. Bolte and Roger P. Denlinger 23.1 Introduction 491 23.2 An Approach for Interpreting Multiple Impacts on Large Rivers 493 23.3 Geologic Setting, Human and Flood History of the Willamette 495 23.4 Data and Methods for Measuring Historical Channel Change 501 23.5 Results: Patterns and Controls on Historical Channel Changes 503 23.6 Discussion, Narrative of Historical Channel Change 507 23.7 Conclusion 513 24 Rivers And Humans – Unintended Consequences 517 Stanley A. Schumm 24.1 Introduction 517 24.2 Armour 517 24.3 Hydrology 524 24.4 Conclusion 532 25 Large Rivers from Space 535 Leal A.K. Mertes and T. Tamuka Magadzire 25.1 Introduction 535 25.2 Basin Characteristics 536 25.3 Valley Confi guration 537 25.4 Geomorphology 539 25.5 Water-Surface Elevation, Gradient and Discharge 542 25.6 Water Extent and Inundation Mapping 542 25.7 Mapping Sediment Concentration 542 25.8 Zambezi River – Water Type Mapping on Floodplains 546 25.9 Thermal Properties 546 25.10 Change Detection 548 26 Channel Geometry Analysis Technique for the Lower Mississippi River 553 Philip J. Soar, Colin R. Thorne, Oliver P. Harmar, David S. Biedenharn and C. Fred Pinkard 26.1 Introduction 553 26.2 Context 554 26.3 Data Acquisition and Pre-Processing 556 26.4 Analytical Approach and Methodology 560 26.5 Results 563 26.6 Interpretation and Commentary 563 26.7 Conclusion 569 27 The Management of Large Rivers: Technical and Political Challenges 571 Ian C. Campbell 27.1 Introduction 571 27.2 The Challenges of River Management 574 27.3 Management of Rivers in Developing Countries 581 27.4 Conclusion 583 28 The Physical Diversity and Assessment of a Large River System: The Murray-Darling Basin, Australia 587 Martin C. Thoms, Scott C. Rayburg and Melissa R. Neave 28.1 Introduction 587 28.2 The Murray-Darling Basin 588 28.3 The Science Challenge for Assessing Rivers in the Murray-Darling Basin 591 28.4 Assessing the Physical Condition of Rivers at the Catchment Scale 596 28.5 The Physical Condition of Rivers in the Murray-Darling Basin 598 28.6 The Geography of Disturbance 603 28.7 Conclusion 604 29 Climatic and Anthropogenic Impacts on Water and Sediment Discharges from the Yangtze River (Changjiang), 1950–2005 609 Kehui Xu, John D. Milliman, Zuosheng Yang and Hui Xu 29.1 Introduction 609 29.2 Physical Setting 610 29.3 Data and Methods 611 29.4 Spatial Variations of Water and Sediment 611 29.5 Temporal Variations of Water and Sediment 613 29.6 Discussion – Climatic and Anthropogenic Impacts 616 29.7 Future Change and Coastal Responses 621 29.8 Climatic and Anthropogenic Impacts on Other Global Rivers – The Mississippi Example 622 29.9 Conclusion 622 30 Large River Systems and Climate Change 627 Michael D. Blum 30.1 Introduction 627 30.2 A Brief History of Ideas 627 30.3 Fluvial Response to Climate Change: Some General Concepts 631 30.4 Fluvial Response to Past Climate Change: Contrasting Examples 638 30.5 Epilogue: Large Rivers and Climate Change, Past to Future 649 References 656 Index 661

About the Author :
Avijit Gupta, School of Geography, University of Leeds, UK, and Visiting Scientist, Centre for Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing, National University of Singapore.