Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

The Morphodynamic Interaction Of River Deltas And Their Marshes, Kelly M. Sanks

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Globally, many of the largest river deltas contain vast marsh platforms that are currently threatened due to a combination of anthropogenic alterations to rivers and increasing relative sea level rise. Restoration and management plans for river deltas depend on optimizing riverine sediment accumulation in marsh platforms. However, the accumulation of organic material in marsh platforms is often neglected in predictive models and the interaction of ecogeomorphic processes governing marsh accumulation with the physical processes governing river delta growth is poorly understood.

Herein, I investigate this complex relationship through a combination of field and experimental studies. I show that in coastal …

Tidal-Groundwater Study Of The Slaughter Beach Salt Marsh In Slaughter Beach, De, Michael Powers

West Chester University Master’s Theses

Seasonal and decadal monitoring of salt marsh at Slaughter Beach, DE documented long-term and short-term variations in number and sizes of salt ponds. Over 400 salt ponds ranging in size between 0.5 m² to 0.11 km² were identified on 5.5 km² salt marsh platform. The purpose of this study is to quantify hydrologic conditions and measure groundwater discharge of a salt marsh, particularly the impact of tidal forces on groundwater fluctuation.

Four wells with nests of mini-piezometers with ONSET Pressure Transducers were installed along a transect crossing the largest salt pond (0.11 km²) in the …

Holocene Sedimentary Responses To Growth Faulting In A Back-Barrier Setting: East Matagorda Peninsula, Texas, Phillip Wolfe

Theses and Dissertations--Earth and Environmental Sciences

The structural framework of the northern Gulf of Mexico coastal zone is characterized by numerous growth fault systems. Neotectonic processes in coastal marshes in this region have been shown to be important drivers of relative sea-level rise as well as having significant influence on marsh accretion processes. One active growth fault has been identified at East Matagorda Peninsula, Texas. To characterize the Holocene behavior of this fault and the consequent sedimentary responses, a suite of fallout radionuclides (⁷Be, ¹³⁷Cs, ²¹⁰Pb) and radiocarbon, supplemented by sediment physical property data have been used to determine sediment mixing depths, …