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Diana Hapsari

Suspended Sediment Transport Dynamics in Rivers: Multi-scale drivers of temporal variation
Authors: Kim Vercruysse, Robert C. Grabowski, R.J. Rickson
Publisher: Earth-Science Review 166 (2017): page 38-55

This paper is aimed to understand about the factors affecting (drivers) suspended
sediment transport. There are 2 keys will be strengthened on this paper:
1.

The choice of timescale in many sediment studies limits the SS transport explanation

2.

Common methods to analyse and quantify SS transport and source are often applied
without consideration of the different timescaleThis paper will be discussed at 6 sections, in which section 1 is an introduction andsection 6 is conclusion. Section 2 is about spatiotemporal complexity of SS transport. In thissection, the definition of soil erosion, why we need to understand how SS transport can varyspatially within a catchment and also temporal variability un SS transport are explained.
Section 3 is about empirical approaches to analyse SS transport and source. Sediment
Rating Curve, hysteresis models, sediment fingerprinting and another multivariate datamining technique are explained in this section. Section 4 is about the interpretation ofsuspended sediment transport dynamics. In this section, factors affecting SS transport areexplained. A lack of understanding about of these factors and the interaction between will
make a less accurate equation. The drivers are:a. Inter-annual variation
SS loads vary over long timescale (decade or centuries) due to natural and anthropogenicforces. Over long timescale, discharge is often a good predictor of mean loads. However,rainfall patterns and amount changes can cause significant changes in long-term SS loads.
Moreover, a shift in sediment sources can cause variable sediment loads under similarhydrometeorological condition (can be seen from hysteresis models). So, a long-term
observation is essentials to demonstrate the interaction between the catchment and river.
b. Seasonal variation
SS loads vary significantly throughout the year and it is related to seasonal pattern inrainfall, snowmelt and storm events. On the other hand, interaction between land use,
rainfall patterns, soil moisture and hydrology cause variation in SS transport. Changes inrainfall often cause marked variation in SS transport in rivers, for which the impact os
often magnified by land cover changes in both natural and agricultural.
c. Event based variation

Paper Sharing
Diana HapsariHigh flow events generate a large proportion of the total annual SS loads in river.
Sediment source can also change over short timescale. Persistent high discharge cancause banks to collapse resulting a sudden increase in sediment supply. That condition
can be explained by using hysteresis loop.
Section 5 is about a guideline for a multi-timescale approach to sediment regimecharacterization. The summary can be seen in Table 1.
Finally, over the past decades, research on estimating and evaluating SS transport
dynamics has shifted from single SRC to complex data-mining techniques and sedimentfingerprinting methods. However, these methods have often been applied without
consideration of the temporal scale of the process. Future research will be better able toidentify the factors affecting SS transport in rivers, improve SS transport modelling andpropose effective, sustainable solution to sediment management problems.