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Erosion Of Fractured Banks, Lake Sakakawea, Western North Dakota, Mark C. Elliott

Theses and Dissertations

Shoreline erosion at Lake Sakakawea has exceeded originally predicted rates. This thesis is a continuation of a project, begun in 1983, to study erosion rates, causes, and prediction; the purpose has been to describe variations in fracture patterns in shoreline banks and assess their affects on erosion rates.

During the first phase of this project (1983-1986), average bank recession was rapid (l.Sm/yr) and factors related to wave action, including fetch, bank orientation, and beach composition, were most important. Since 1986, low lake levels have persisted and wave action has not been a factor; however banks continue to recede, but at …

Sedimentology And Stratigraphy Of Glacial Lake Souris, North Dakota: Effects Of A Glacial-Lake Outburst, Mark L. Lord

Theses and Dissertations

Glacial-lake outbursts commonly occurred along the southern margin of the Laurentide Ice Sheet as ice-marginal lakes suddenly drained. These outbursts released huge volumes of water with tremendous erosive potential, forming large trench-shape channels. Although glacial-lake spillways have been studied in detail, the effects of outbursts on downstream lakes have not. The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the effects of the Glacial Lake Regina outburst on the lake that received the flows, Glacial Lake Souris.

Glacial Lake Souris, located in what is now North Dakota, was inundated by about 74 km3 of water carrying 25 km3 of sediment from …

Shoreline Recession: Past, Present, And Future, Lake Sakakawea, North Dakota, Brian S. Sandberg

Theses and Dissertations

Shoreline erosion is a major problem at Lake Sakakawea, North Dakota. Instrumentation along the eastern shore was initiated in 1983 to measure shoreline recession and determine the processes responsible, with the ultimate goal being the development of a relatively simple equation to predict the rate of recession which is better than the model currently used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

For the twenty stations, the present rate of recession ranges from 0.2 to 4.3 m/y. Approximately 78 percent of the yearly recession occurs during the warm months (May-October) due to wave erosion. Erosion over the cold months occurs …

A Quantitative Analysis Of Shoreline Erosion Processes, Lake Sakakawea, North Dakota, Mark D. Millsop

Theses and Dissertations

Shoreline erosion is a problem at Lake Sakakawea and Lake Audubon, North Dakota. Land is lost, water quality is adversely affected, and reservoir storage capacity is decreased.

Instrumentation of the eastern shores of both lakes began in 1983 to quantify bank erosion by process (e.g., wave erosion, rainsplash and runoff, and frost-thaw failure). Other data gathered included: pool level fluctuations; wind velocity, direction, and duration; precipita tion; soil moisture; frost penetration; freeze-thaw cycles; and geology (e.g., texture, clay mineralogy and structure).

The magnitude of shoreline erosion is highly variable, especially within Lake Sakakawea. For the interval of May 1983 through …