Further research in the GOP is needed to help constrain the Fly sediment budget and to better understand sediment and solute cycling throughout this region. A. Natural Factors 1. Has strong well documented forcing 2. Has active sedimentation with opportunities to study interaction with many kinds of sediment storage elements. Sediment is actively transferred among environments 4.
System is closed to the sea.
There is a question of whether in order to study off shore sedimentation it is necessary to monitor the other smaller basins entering the Gulf of Papua. 5.There is a high resolution stratigraphic record 6. Carbonate environments are well established offshore 7. If the alternate site is the Sepik, the Fly differs by having contributions from a mine sediment source, a shallow platform across which the floodplain extends and very different offshore environments. The Markham has less extensive floodplain system and different offshore environment.