1. Pre-development denudation rates for the Great Barrier Reef catchments derived using Be-10
- Author
-
Keith Fifield, Jacky Croke, Jay Ward, Anna H. Rood, Klaus M. Wilcken, Rebecca Bartley, Dylan H. Rood, Apolline Mariotti, Reka H Fulop, Samuel E. Kelley, and Alexandru T. Codilean
- Subjects
Geologic Sediments ,Environmental remediation ,Environmental Sciences & Ecology ,Aquatic Science ,Oceanography ,(10)Be ,Great barrier reef ,SITU-PRODUCED BE-10 ,Marine & Freshwater Biology ,Cosmogenic nuclide ,Temporal scales ,Baseline (configuration management) ,EROSION RATES ,Be-10 ,Hydrology ,Science & Technology ,LAND-USE ,COSMOGENIC NUCLIDES ,Sediment yield ,Sediment ,ESCARPMENT RETREAT ,Denudation ,Pollution ,MOUNTAIN EROSION ,Marine Biology & Hydrobiology ,WATER-QUALITY ,Erosion ,Environmental science ,Suspended load ,BURDEKIN RIVER ,SEDIMENT PRODUCTION ,Reef plan ,DRY-TROPICAL CATCHMENT ,Life Sciences & Biomedicine ,Environmental Sciences - Abstract
Understanding of the pre-development, baseline denudation rates that deliver sediment to the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) has been elusive. Cosmogenic 10Be in sediment is a useful integrator of denudation rates and sediment yields averaged over large spatial and temporal scales. This study presents 10Be data from 71 sites across 11 catchments draining to the GBR: representing 80% of the GBR catchment area and provide background sediment yields for the region. Modern, short-term, sediment yields derived from suspended load concentrations are compared to the 10Be data to calculate an Accelerated Erosion Factor (AEF) that highlights denudation "hot-spots" where sediment yields have increased over the long-term background values. The AEF results show that 58% basins have higher modern sediment yields than long-term yields. The AEF is considered a useful approach to help prioritise on-ground investments in remediation and the additional measured empirical data in this paper will help support future predictive models.
- Published
- 2021