Spatio-temporal characteristics and causes of changes in erosion-accretion in the Yangtze (Changjiang) submerged delta from 1982 to 2010

doi:10.1007/s11442-015-1209-4

Abstract

Abstract:

The Yangtze delta’s response to accelerating river damming and irrigation is a topic of global concern. This research analyzed the general erosion-accretion of the submerged delta front, the spatio-temporal changing pattern in different sub-regions, the geomorphological changes in typical cross-sections, and the geomorphological causes of the four main sub-regions (the eastern tidal wetland of Chongming-CM, the Hengsha shoal-HS, the Jiuduansha wetland-JDS, and the eastern tidal wetland of Nanhui-NH). Data sources include topographic data measured at high-resolution, sediment load at Datong Station, and the corresponding estuary construction information. Major findings are: (1) in general, the study area had slightly eroded (the erosion area ratio was 51.83% and the accretion area ratio was 48.17%) from 1982 to 2010, and it had experienced a shift of “erosion-accretion- erosion”. The spatio-temporal change of geomorphology was also significant in the eight sub-regions, excluding constant erosion in the North Channel; (2) evolution in eastern and northern CM and HS, northern JDS, and the region within the 5 m isobath of NH was dominated by vertical deposition, which was the opposite of that in southern CM and HS, and the region within the 5 m isobath of eastern and southern JDS; (3) on the whole, the encompassed surface areas (ESAs) of the 2 m and 5 m isobaths kept increasing, and the annual growth rates reached 10.42 km²/yr and 7.99 km²/yr respectively during 1982-2010 (however, four sub-regions exhibited disagreements), and in the whole region and all sub-regions, the ESA of the 10 m isobath decreased, while the ESA of the 15 m isobath changed slightly during the period and remained stable; (4) being less influenced by the estuarine engineering, CM was the only sub-region where the ESA of the isobath decreased in accordance with the decline of the sediment load. Major conclusions are that estuarine engineering projects play an increasingly important role in affecting the submerged delta against the macro-background of the reduction of sediment load, the change of ESA and the distribution of isobaths. Along with the accelerating construction of the Shanghai International Shipping Centre and reclamation project, the geomorphological evolution of the submerged delta will become more complex and thus deserves frequent monitoring in the future.

Key words: erosion-accretion changes, spatio-temporal characteristics, causes, submerged delta, Yangtze (Changjiang) Estuary, China

Chengcheng SONG, Xiaojing SUN, Jun WANG, Mengya LI, Lu ZHENG. Spatio-temporal characteristics and causes of changes in erosion-accretion in the Yangtze (Changjiang) submerged delta from 1982 to 2010[J].Journal of Geographical Sciences, 2015, 25(8): 899-916.

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Indicators/periods	1982-2010	1982-1997	1997-2002	2002-2010
Area ratio of accretion and erosion zones	0.92	0.90	1.14	1.05
Net erosion-accretion quantity (10⁸ m³/yr)	-0.54	-1.26	0.74	-0.01
Net erosion-accretion rate (cm/yr)	-1.11	-2.56	1.50	-0.02
Accretion area (10⁸ m²)	23.66	23.32	26.21	25.18
Accretion volume (10⁸ m³)	41.98	31.02	28.01	30.96
Erosion area (10⁸ m²)	25.46	25.80	22.92	23.96
Erosion volume (10⁸ m³)	57.25	49.93	24.32	31.02

Indicators Areas/periods	Net erosion-accretion quantity (10⁸ m³)				Net erosion-accretion rate (cm/yr)
Indicators Areas/periods	1982-2010	1982-1997	1997-2002	2002-2010	1982-2010	1982-1997	1997-2002	2002-2010
① NB	1.91	-0.76	1.35	1.32	3.11	-2.32	12.31	7.52
② SB	-6.40	-4.87	0.65	-2.18	-4.63	-6.57	2.60	-5.46
③ NC	-4.70	-2.99	-0.76	-0.94	-10.57	-12.57	-9.41	-7.27
④ SC	-1.36	0.79	-0.83	-1.32	-2.52	2.72	-8.47	-8.42
⑤ CM	-4.53	-11.28	5.85	0.89	-1.31	-6.07	9.45	0.90
⑥ HS	-0.52	-2.91	-1.71	4.10	-0.22	-2.36	-4.13	6.19
⑦ JDS	-0.18	1.90	-0.35	-1.73	-0.09	1.86	-1.02	-3.14
⑧ NH	0.83	1.41	-0.56	-0.02	0.27	0.86	-1.03	-0.03

Year	Total area (km²)				Change rate (km²/yr)
Year	1982	1997	2002	2010	1982-1997	1997-2002	2002-2010
The area within 2 m isobath	526.29	607.93	609.88	818.12	5.44	0.39	26.03
The area within 5 m isobath	1685.09	1657.73	1712.27	1808.22	-1.82	10.91	11.99
The area within 10 m isobath	/	3938.22	3883.00	3693.94	/	-11.04	-23.63
The area within 15 m isobath	/	4856.77	4724.45	4765.91	/	-26.46	5.18

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