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During the process of sediment mobilisation unconsolidated sediments are deformed due to fluid overpressure. Structures formed by sediment mobilisation can serve as high permeable pathways for vertical fluid migration through a low-permeable seal layer and, therefore, have to be considered in the risk assessment of CO 2 storage sites. In our study, we designed and conducted physical sandbox models to investigate structural characteristics and the dynamic evolution of sediment mobilisation resulting from pore fluid overpressure. Preliminary results show that basically two different modes of cover deformation occur: uplift in cohesive sediment and pipe formation in low-cohesive sediments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hydrodynamic drag of towed fishing gears leads to direct impacts on the benthic environment, and can play a major role in the overall economic efficiency of the fishing operation and emissions of nitrogen oxides, sulphur oxides and greenhouse gases such as CO 2 . Here we investigate some of the underpinning processes which govern these issues and make direct hydrodynamic drag measurements and calculate the hydrodynamic drag coefficients for a range of well-defined gear components that, when fished, are in contact with the seabed. We measure the concentration and particle size distribution of the sediment mobilised into the water column in the wake of these gear elements, at a range of towing speeds, and demonstrate that as the hydrodynamic drag increases the amount of sediment mobilised also increases. We also vary the weight of the elements and show that this does not influence the amount of sediment put into the water column. These results provide a better understanding of the physical and mechanical processes that take place when a towed fishing gear interacts with the seabed. They will permit the development of more fuel efficient gears and gears of reduced benthic impact and will improve the empirical modelling of the sediment mobilised into the turbulent wake behind towed fishing gears which will lead to better assessments of the environmental and ecological impact of fishing gears. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The accumulation of monosulfidic sediments in inland waterways is emerging as a major environmental issue. Mobilisation and suspension of monosulfidic sediments can result in deoxygenation, acidification of the water column and mobilisation of trace metals. The controls on monosulfidic sediment mobilisation and the critical thresholds for its scour and entrainment have not been established. This study examines the effect of a minor flood event (average return interval of 5 years) on sulfidic sediment scour in the Wakool River in southern NSW, Australia. Five profiles were sampled within a small (∼300 m) reach before and after a minor flood event to determine the degree of sediment scour and transport. The results indicate substantial scour of both monosulfidic sediments and underlying bed sediments (approximately 2100 m3). Changes in the sediment geochemistry suggest large concentrations of monosulfidic sediments had been suspended in the water column, partially-oxidised and redeposited. This is supported by 210Pb results from one of the profiles. These results suggest that these monosulfidic sediments can move as bed load during minor flood events. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The mobilisation of sediment by towed demersal fishing gears has been related to the release of nutrients, benthic infaunal mortality and the resuspension of phytoplankton cysts and copepod eggs. Hence, to understand the broader environmental and ecological implications of demersal fishing, it is important to be able to estimate accurately the amount of sediment put into the water column by towed gears. Experimental trials were carried out in the Moray Firth, Scotland, to measure the quantity of sediment remobilised by trawl gear components. It is demonstrated, for a given sediment type, that there is a relationship between the hydrodynamic drag of the gear element and the mass of sediment entrained behind it. A better understanding of this relationship and the hydrodynamic processes involved will lead to the development of accurate predictive models and aid the design of fishing gears of reduced impact. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In response to increasing concerns about the potential toxicological impacts of (extreme) flood events, scientists from several disciplines have joined to form the interdisciplinary research project named FLOODSEARCH. FLOODSEARCH is one of the recent Pathfinder Projects supported by the German Excellence Initiative via the Exploratory Research Space at RWTH Aachen (ERS). FLOODSEARCH aims to combine methodologies of hydraulic engineering and ecotoxicology in a new interdisciplinary approach to assess the risks associated with the re-mobilisation of particulate bound contaminants often observed after severe flood events. Impacts of extreme flood events and aspects of re-mobilisation of sediment-bound toxic compounds will be characterised and evaluated in controlled experiments fusing flood simulation technologies with biological effects assessment. The overall goal is to establish a novel and more realistic approach towards flood event testing that can be applied to a number of different questions and species. Specifically, model aquatic species such as rainbow trout (Onchorhynchus mykiss) will be exposed to particle-bound contaminants in flood-like conditions in a specifically designed annular flume that permits monitoring of both physical/chemical and biological parameter. Ultimately, this approach will assist to further our understanding of the potential biological risks associated with increasingly frequent extreme flood events, e.g., as a consequence of climate change, by bridging the gap between the physical (re-)mobilisation of contaminants and resulting toxicological impacts on aquatic organisms. Thus, it is the objective of the project to derive relationships between the hydrodynamic parameters such as velocities and turbulences, the parameters associated to sediment transport such as sediment concentration and grain sizes and the biological parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mass bedload movement is thought to play a key role in initiating stream invertebrate drift during extreme flood events. However, little is known of the importance of the shear of invertebrates from stone surfaces relative to their entrainment along with bed material at different discharges. In particular, it is unclear whether so-called ‘catastrophic drift’ only occurs once mass bedload movement, and hence entrainment of invertebrates, occurs. We investigated the relationship between the mobilisation and transport of bed sediments and the entry ofBaetismayflies into the water column in a laboratory flume. Experiments quantified the percentage ofBaetisdrifting at a range of discharges that mobilised between 0 and 95% of the flume-bed sediments. Control experiments quantified drift losses from sediment fixed to the bed of the flume, such that sediments were immobile even at the highest discharges. Drift losses increased with increasing discharge and velocity in the flume. Sediment mobility contributed significantly to drift (ANCOVA,p<0.001), with consistently greater drift losses in mobile sediment experiments than in those with fixed sediment. The discharge which resulted in a loss of 100% ofBaetisfrom the mobile sediment bed (discharge 30 l s-1) resulted in a loss of approximately 50% of individuals from the fixed bed. Results indicate that once bed sediments are mobilised, entry ofBaetisinto the drift is greater than expected from the shear of animals from stone surfaces alone. Thus, entrainment of animals along with sediment contributes significantly to drift at high flows. This implies that differences in bed stability between sites or streams, or temporal changes in sediment characteristics within a site, could influence patterns of drift. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]