Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Using Long- And Short-Lived Sediment-Associated Isotopes To Track Erosion And Sediment Movement Through Rivers In Yunnan, Sw China, Thomas Bundgaard Neilson

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

This research aims to understand the natural and human influences on erosion in three tributary watersheds to the Mekong River, Yunnan Province, China and to assess the utility of a novel application of isotopic indicators of erosion. It explores how erosion varies through time and space as a function of physical characteristics of the landscape, tectonic forces, and human alteration of the landscape for forestry and agriculture. To accomplish these goals, I use four sediment-associated radionuclides: in situ 10Be, meteoric 10Be, 210Pbex, and 137Cs. These isotopes accumulate in or on sediment grains, and each accumulates to a different depth on …