| Abstract: | Wetlands in the Mississippi River deltaic plain are deteriorating in part because levees and control structures starve them of sediment. In Spring of 2011 a record-breaking flood brought discharge on the lower Mississippi River to dangerous levels, forcing managers to divert up to 3500 m3/s-1 of water to the Atchafalaya River Basin. Here we quantify differences between the Mississippi and Atchafalaya River inundation and sediment-plume patterns using field-calibrated satellite data, and assess the impact these outflows had on wetland sedimentation. We characterize hydrodynamics and suspended sediment patterns of the Mississippi River plume using in-situ data collected during the historic flood. We show that the focused, high-momentum jet from the leveed Mississippi delivered sediment far offshore. In contrast, the plume from the Atchafalaya was more diffuse; diverted water inundated a large area; and sediment was trapped within the coastal current. Maximum sedimentation (up to several centimetres) occurred in the Atchafalaya Basin despite the larger sediment load carried by the Mississippi. Minimum accumulation occurred along the shoreline between these river sources. Our findings provide a mechanistic link between river-mouth dynamics and wetland sedimentation patterns that is relevant for plans to restore deltaic wetlands using artificial diversions. |
| Genre: | Article |
| ProdID: | 70041641 |
| Citation Author: | Falcini, Federico; Khan, Nicole S.; Macelloni, Leonardo; Horton, Benjamin P.; Lutken, Carol B.; McKee, Karen L.; Santoleri, Rosalia; Colella, Simone; Li, Chunyan; Volpe, Gianluca; D’Emidio, Marco; Salusti, Alessandro; Jerolmack, Douglas J. |
| Citation Contributing Office: | National Wetlands Research Center |
| Citation Datum: | |
| Citation Day: | |
| Citation Edition: | |
| Citation Editor: | |
| Citation End Page: | 807 |
| Citation Issue: | |
| Citation Keywords: | |
| Citation Language: | English |
| Citation Larger Work Title: | Nature Geoscience |
| Citation LatN: | |
| Citation LatS: | |
| Citation LonE: | |
| Citation LonW: | |
| Citation Month: | 11 |
| Citation No Pagination: | |
| Citation Number Of Pages: | 4 |
| Citation Online Only Flag: | |
| Citation Phsyical Description: | 5 p. |
| Citation Projection: | |
| Citation Public Comments: | |
| Citation Publisher: | Nature Publishing Group |
| Citation Series: | |
| Citation Series Code: | |
| Citation Series Number: | |
| Citation Search Results Text: | Linking the historic 2011 Mississippi River flood to coastal wetland sedimentation; 2012; Article; Journal; Nature Geoscience; Falcini, Federico; Khan, Nicole S.; Macelloni, Leonardo; Horton, Benjamin P.; Lutken, Carol B.; McKee, Karen L.; Santoleri, Rosalia; Colella, Simone; Li, Chunyan; Volpe, Gianluca; D’Emidio, Marco; Salusti, Alessandro; Jerolmack, Douglas J. |
| Citation Start Page: | 803 |
| Citation Volume: | 5 |
| Citation Year: | 2012 |
| Type: | citation/reference |
| Text: | Linking the historic 2011 Mississippi River flood to coastal wetland sedimentation; 2012; Article; Journal; Nature Geoscience; Falcini, Federico; Khan, Nicole S.; Macelloni, Leonardo; Horton, Benjamin P.; Lutken, Carol B.; McKee, Karen L.; Santoleri, Rosalia; Colella, Simone; Li, Chunyan; Volpe, Gianluca; D’Emidio, Marco; Salusti, Alessandro; Jerolmack, Douglas J. |
| URL (THUMBNAIL): | http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/thumbnails/outside_thumb.jpg |
| URL (DIGITAL OBJECT IDENTIFIER): | http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1615 |
| Date Other: | Mon, 10 Dec 2012 00:00 -0600 |
| Publisher: | Nature Publishing Group |
