Sediment deposition in a small lowland stream—management implications

✍ Scribed by Wood, P.J. ;Armitage, P.D.

• Book ID: 101295036
• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1999
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 253 KB
• Volume: 15
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0886-9375
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1099-1646(199901/06)15:1/3<199::aid-rrr531>3.0.co;2-0

✦ Synopsis

Fine sediment deposition is a widespread phenomenon encountered in rivers and streams as a result of both natural and anthropogenic activities. The Little Stour (Kent, UK) has a history of low-flow problems owing to drought and groundwater abstraction. Fine sediment deposits were mapped at two sites on the falling limb of the hydrograph at monthly intervals between May and September, 1995. The sampling period coincided with one of the driest periods in England since records began in the 17th century. The area of the channel bed covered by fine sediments increased from approximately 10 to 20% at the upstream site and from 20 to 40% at the downstream site during the study period. The benthic macroinvertebrate communities from different substrate mesohabitats were distinct, with riffle taxa (i.e. Agapetus fuscipes and Simuliidae) confined to areas of clean gravel. This suggests that an expansion of fine sediment deposits may result in impoverishment of the community. The implications of these findings are discussed with particular reference to the timing of management activities within lowland streams.