The Work of Streams

The Work of Streams

Streams generally
erode their
channels lifting
loose particles by
abrasion,
grinding, and by
dissolving
soluble material.

http://soer.justice.tas.gov.au/2003/image/10
8/p-water_erosion-stream-m.jpg

The Work of Streams

Streams transport materials of
erosion in three ways:
1. In Solution (dissolved load)
2. In Suspension (suspended
load)
3. Scooting or Rolling along
the bottom (bed load)

Dissolved Load
Most of the dissolved load
finds its way into streams via
groundwater.
Usually expressed as
dissolved material per million
parts of water (parts per
million).

The Work of Streams

Streams deliver
almost 4 billion
metric tons of
dissolved
substances to the
oceans each
year.

Photo by R. Jowsey

Suspended Load
Most streams carry the
largest part of their
load in suspension.
The visible cloud of
sediment suspended
in the water is the
most obvious portion
of a streams load.

http://rpmedia.ask.com/ts?
u=/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1
/10/Skawa_River%2C_Poland
%2C_flood_2001.jpg/215pxSkawa_River%2C_Poland
%2C_flood_2001.jpg

Suspended Load
Streams usually
only carry sand,
silt, and clay in
this fashion.
Higher velocity in
a stream may allow
it to carry larger
particles in
suspension.

http://www.geomorph.org/gal/mslattery/IAG4.
jpg

Bed Load
Bed load is
that part of a
streams load
that is too
large to be
carried in
suspension.

http://www.medinaswcd.org/images/streamsedi
ment.jpg

Competence and Capacity

The ability of a stream to
carry a load is determined by
two factors:
1. Competence
2. Capacity

Competence
Competence of a
stream measures
the largest
particles it can
carry.
A streams
competence
increases with
velocity.

http://amyglenn.com/images/stream_load.gif

http://uregina.ca/~sauchyn/geog323/hjul
strom.gif

Capacity
A streams capacity is the
maximum load it can carry.
Capacity is directly related to a
streams discharge.
The greater the volume of a
stream, the greater its
capacity for carrying sediment.

Deposition
As a streams
velocity decreases
(slows down), its
competence
decreases and
sediment begins to
drop out, largest
particles first.

Click for
Deposit
ion
Animati
on

Deposition

http://www.northcoastjournal.com/011603/co
ver0116-sediment.jpg

Deposition occurs
as streamflow
drops below the
critical settling
velocity of a
certain particle
size.

Sorting
Stream transport separates
solid particles of various sizes,
large to small.
This process is called sorting.
It explains why particles of
similar size are deposited
together.

Alluvium

http://www.windows.ucar.edu/earth/geology/i
mages/alluvial_fan_lg.jpeg

The sorted
material deposited
by a stream is
called alluvium.
Many different
depositional
features are made
of alluvium.

Deltas
A delta is an
accumulation
of sediment
formed where
a stream
enters a lake
or ocean.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/com
mons/thumb/e/ef/Indus_River_Delta.jpg/30
0px-Indus_River_Delta.jpg

Natural Levees
A natural
levee is a ridge
made up mostly
coarse
sediments that
parallels some
streams.

http://sepmstrata.org/MARINESEDIMENTS/delta/I
mage5.gif

Natural Levees
A natural levee forms when
a stream repeatedly
overflows its banks.

http://www.google.com/imgres?
imgurl=http://www.uwsp.edu/geO/faculty/ozsvath/images/natural_levees.jpg&imgrefurl=http:/
/qwickstep.com/search/naturallevees.html&usg=__2HlIkwOrvsT_z58p_1xfL1D9BBc=&h=357&w=1020&sz=66&hl=en&start
=0&zoom=1&tbnid=VbOgXhXPx0mzM:&tbnh=48&tbnw=137&ei=bbozTc6YM42cgQeGlK2HCw&prev=/images%3Fq
%3Dnatural%2Blevee%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls
%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26gbv%3D2%26biw%3D1227%26bih%3D518%26tbs
%3Disch:10%2C126&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=483&vpy=250&dur=398&hovh=133&hovw=380

Narrow Valleys
A narrow vshaped valley
indicates that a
streams primary
work has been
down-cutting
towards base
level.

Narrow Valleys
The Yellowstone
River is an excellent
example of a narrow
valley.
Rapids and
waterfalls are the
predominant
features of a narrow
valley.

Photo by R. Jowsey

Narrow Valleys

Photo by R. Jowsey

Photo by R. Jowsey

Narrow Valleys

Photo by R. Jowsey

Wide Valleys
Once a stream has cut its channel
closer to base level, downward
erosion decreases.
More of the streams energy is
then directed from side to side.
The result is a widening of the
valley as the river cuts away at
first one bank and then the other.

Floodplain
The side to side
cutting of a
stream
eventually
produces a flat
valley floor, or
floodplain.

http://www.uwec.edu/jolhm/EH/Disrude/images
/floodplain.gif

Floodplain
Streams that flow
on floodplains move
in meanders.
A meander is a
loop-like bend in
the course of a
stream.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_m4za0X
NgtDQ/TPePP8VFdnI/AAAAAAAAAN
c/ozhgNtdWX0/s400/okvango+river+m
eander+-+robhig.jpg

Meanders
Once a meander
begins to form,
it gets larger.
Most erosion
occurs on the
outside of the
meander.

http://www.scioly.org/w/images/6/65/Meander.jpg

Meanders

http://www.scioly.org/w/images/6/65/Meander.jpg

The outside
bank in a
meander is
sometimes
called the cut
bank.

Check for Understanding

Why is the cut bank (outer
bank) the area of greatest
erosion in a meander?
The cut bank is the zone of
greatest stream velocity.

Oxbow Lake
An oxbow lake is a
crescent-shaped
(often temporary)
lake that is formed
when a bend in a
river is cut off from
the main channel
by the forces of
erosion.

http://www.geosociety.org/Earthcache/Ima
ges/Forming%20an%20Oxbow
%20111232009.jpg

http://www.nywetlands.com/oxbowlake.html

Oxbow Lake
An oxbow lake
will slowly be
created as soil
erodes and redeposits,
changing the
river's original
course.

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/harry.wickens/b
orneo/borneo-070.jpg

Oxbow Lake

http://belmont.sd62.bc.ca/teacher/geology12/photos/
erosion-water/meander-oxbow.gif

Oxbow lake
formation video
demonstration
(click left).

Independent Assignment
Use your notes and your
knowledge of biology to
answer the questions on your
worksheet.

References
Adapted from:
Tarbuck & Lutgens (2009). Earth
Science. Prentice Hall, Boston.
http://www.nywetlands.com/oxbowlake
.html