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CHANNEL MIGRATION AND INCISION

ON THE BEATTON RLVER
By Gerald C. Nanson 1 and Edward J. Hickin 2

ABSTRACT: New field data relating to bend migration rates with bend radius
of curvature to channel width ratios (r„Jio) for the Beatton River confirm the
form of the relationship the writers described in 1975, although there is more
variance than our initial results suggested. Recent data from forest successions
on the floodplains of a variety of migrating rivers show that channel migration
is a discontinuous process within any single bend. This means that predictions
of migration rates for individual bends, based on short-term measurements
using erosion pins or aerial photographs, are highly suspect. These variations
in migration rate are likely a response to fluctuating channel widths over time
because of a short-term imbalance between the rate of cutbank erosion and the
rate of point-bar sediment accumulation. Finally the examination of new evi-
dence for channel incision on the Beatton River shows that the river is down-
cutting at a rate of about 2 mm/yr, not at 10 mm/yr as reported earlier.

INTRODUCTION

In a previous paper (3) the writers presented channel migration rates

for the Beatton River, in British Columbia (Fig. 1), which were derived
from an analysis of the age of floodplain vegetation determined from
tree ring counts. Because this paper has been used for engineering de-
sign purposes, it is important that it be seen in the context set by sub-
sequent work by the writers over the last seven years. Some of this re-
search has already been published (2,1,5,6,7). A large a m o u n t of n e w
data was collected in the s u m m e r of 1980. The opportunity is also taken
here to examine evidence for the discontinuous nature of channel mi-
gration as well as to correct an error in our 1975 interpretation of the
rate of channel incision for the Beatton River.
Descriptions of the sedimentary a n d hydraulic characteristics of the
study reach have been provided by the writers elsewhere (1,3,5,7).

RATES OF CHANNEL MIGRATION ON THE BEATTON RIVER

The channel bends analyzed for migration rates along the Beatton
River (3) were selected in order to isolate and identify the influence of
'Sr. Lect, Dept. of Geography, Univ. of Wollongong, PO Box 1144, Wollon-
gong, New South Wales, Australia, 2500.
2
Assoc. Prof., Dept. of Geography, Simon Fraser Univ., Burnaby, British Co-
lumbia, Canada, V5A 1S6.
Note.—Discussion open until August 1, 1983. To extend the closing date one
month, a written request must be filed with the ASCE Manager of Technical and
Professional Publications. The manuscript for this paper was submitted for re-
view and possible publication on July 2, 1981. This paper is part of the Journal
of Hydraulic Engineering, Vol. 109, No. 3, March, 1983. ©ASCE, ISSN 0733-9429/
83/0003-0327/$01.00. Proc. No. 17791.

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J. Hydraul. Eng., 1983, 109(3): 327-337

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FIG. 1 .—The Study Area in Western Canada

bend curvature (radius of bend curvature/channel width, rm/w). This

relationship is in the form of a complex curve reproduced again in Fig.
2(a). Although the fit of the curve to the data points appears justified,
the relationship is based on an initial study of only 10 bends where the
determination of channel radius of curvature could be criticized as being
partly subjectively derived. In order to assess the validity of this original
relationship the writers have increased the original data set to 16 bends.
In addition, the writers have developed an objective method of deter-
mining the radius of curvature in order to eliminate the operator bias
which can significantly increase the apparent fit of the relationship.
Radius of curvature has been redefined in the form rm = (r' + r")/2,
as shown in Fig. 3. Thus, the radius of curvature for the bend is the
mean radius of two circles: one passing through x2y2, x3y3, and x4y4; the
other passes through x^, x3y3, and x5y5, where x3y3 are on the bend
axis (point of maximum curvature). The digitizing interval, Ax, for the
five sets of coordinates is equal to the mean channel width measured
at straight reaches (usually at plantorm inflection points). This measure
of bend radius reflects both the strong curvature at the bend axis and
the broader sweep of the limbs of the bend. Only if the bend were per-
fectly circular in planform would rm = r' = r". The coordinates for this
calculation are located on the convex bank because it represents a bend
curvature intermediate to those defined by the concave bank line and
the scroll bar marking the beginning of the migration period in question.
The complete data set for the Beatton River is summarized in Table
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M
(m/y)

—1 ' T"
4 6
(r m /w)

M
(m/y)

-. 1 • 1 • r~ —i 1 1 • r
0 2 4 6 10 12 14
(r m /w)
0.10:

0.05-

0.02-

(c)
M/w o.oi-

0.005 •

0.002 -
u<%4
0.001 - 1 1 1 r

(r m /w)

FIG. 2.—Relationship (a) between Channel Migration Rate (M) and the Ratio Ra-
dius of Channel Curvature to Channel Width (rjw) for the Beatton River, Redrawn
from Hickin and Nanson (3); (b) Revised Using Data from Six Additional Bends
and Showing Increased Scatter, but the Same General Form as that Presented in
1975; (c) Revised with Migration Rate Presented in Channel Widths/Year

1 and graphed in Figs. 2 (b and c). Although the graph of migration rate
vs. the curvature ratio is less well defined than that shown in Fig. 2(a)
it clearly has the same basic form. The same data are shown in Fig. 2(c)
in a more generalized form as migration rate in channel widths /year vs.
the curvature ratio.

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J. Hydraul. Eng., 1983, 109(3): 327-337

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FIG. 3.—A Redefinition of Mean Radius of Curvature (r„) for a Meander Bend

The scatter of data presented in Figs. 2 (a and c) reflects some mea-

surement error from the indirect determination of migration rates using
tree-ring counts. Most of it, however, is probably a simple function of
site variability (for example, differences in local bank strength). The
trend describing the increasing migration rate associated with declining
values of the curvature ratio appears to be better defined than the pos-
itive trend of migration rate vs. the curvature ratio for rm/w < 3. That
difference in scatter is consistent with the notion that bends of tight cur-
vature have migration rates which are extremely sensitive to any
changes in bend curvature.
The use of these modified procedures of analysis, and the inclusion
of new data, together confirm the migration rate vs. bend curvature re-
lationship for the Beatton River proposed earlier by the writers (3).

TOWARDS A GENERAL MODEL OF CHANNEL MIGRATION

The Beatton River migration study was designed to yield data that
would isolate the influence of bend planform by holding all other factors
sensibly constant. Its general purpose is scientific rather than immedi-
ately practical in nature. But these appear to be the only long-term mi-
gration data available for western Canadian rivers, and the writers have
become aware of attempts to use them out of context for design pur-
poses. Thus, it is important to see the Beatton River data in the context
of a general model of channel migration.
Long-term rates of lateral migration (M) on most rivers can probably
be expressed by the qualitative statement
M = F ([l,RfhfG,p) (1)
in which O, R, h, G, and p = respectively, stream power (essentially the
discharge-slope product), the erosional resistance of concave-bank ma-
terial, the height of the concave bank (degree of incision), sediment sup-
ply rate, and a parameter expressing the influence of bend plariforrn
geometry (rm/iv in this study) on migration rate. Sediment size may also
be important but its effect is still unrecognized.
The writers preliminary analysis of channel migration data from a va-
riety of rivers in British Columbia and Alberta suggests that, as a first

J. Hydraul. Eng., 1983, 109(3): 327-337

 TABLE 1 .—Widths, Curvatures, and Migration Rates for the 16 Study Bends on
the Beatton River
Radius of Migration rate,
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Width, curvature, M, in meters

Bend in meters in meters ?mlW per year M/w
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)
1 46 136 2.96 0.62 0.0135
2 38 132 3.45 0.60 0.0158
3 75 ,178 2.38 0.31 0.0041
4 30 80 2.65 0.70 0.0233
5 30 86 2.87 0.41 0.0137
6 45 178 3.97 0.57 0.0127
7 56 352 6.34 0.31 0.0055
8 56 66 1.18 0.15 0.0027
9 58 254 4.42 0.55 0.0095
10 40 92 2.31 0.46 0.0115
11 43 58 1.35 0.38 0.0088
12 75 971 13.00 0.21 0.0028
13 38 73 1.90 0.25 0.0066
14 38 30 8.17 0.16 0.0042
15 50 241 4.84 0.41 0.0082
16 47 186 3.94 0.69 0.0147

approximation, channel width may be a reasonable linear scaling factor

to account for variations in stream power. If that is the case then general
channel migration characteristics may be depicted in the form shown in
Fig. 4. The parameter K is the coefficient of proportionality in Mmax =
Kw, and includes a constant dependent on the units of measurement
used, and the variables R, h, and G. In general K is likely to be largely
dependent on R and can be taken as an approximate index of concave-
bank erodibility. The important point of Fig. 4 is that the Beatton River
data represent only one of a family of curves describing river migration
behavior.
The precise relationships among migration rate, river scale, and resis-
tance to lateral erosion are, however, not yet known.

THE DISCONTINUOUS NATURE OF CHANNEL MIGRATION

From personal observations and from discussions with farmers, con-

cerned with the loss of agricultural land adjacent to meandering rivers,
the writers have become aware of the discontinuous nature of channel
migration. Obviously migration is discontinuous as a result of seasonal
fluctuations in flow. Additionally, however, a cutbank in a particular
bend may retreat rapidly during one flood, and then exhibit little or no
erosion during a similar or larger flood. Likewise, in a single reach of
channel, flow conditions over a few years can result in dramatically dif-
ferent amounts of erosion in two apparently similar bends. This latter
situation is well displayed by the two bends on the Chinchaga River in
Northern Alberta. From aerial photographs, Humphrey (4) identified
two bends in the same reach of channel as being essentially identical in

331

J. Hydraul. Eng., 1983, 109(3): 327-337

 0.1

0,05
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0.02

2 0.005

0.001 -

0.0005 -

~~1—
6 10

r„/w

FIG. 4.—Migration Rate versus Channel Curvature (rjw) for a Range of K Values

planform, cutbank height, and sediment composition (Fig. 5). Compar-

ison, however, between the 1955 and 1975 photographs revealed differ-
ent rates of migration in each case. Bend in Fig. 5(a) did not migrate at
all in the 21-yr period, whereas bend, in Fig. 5(b), migrated at an average
rate of 5 m/yr. The writers ground surveys conducted in 1980 confirmed
that cutbank composition and height were indeed the same in both cases
(medium sand grading up to fine sand and silt to a height of 4 m). How-
ever, approximate channel migration rates determined from the forest
succession in each bend for a 120 year period were 1.8 m/yr in the bend
shown in Fig. 5 (a), and 1.4 m/yr in the bend shown in Fig. 5(b)\ (Fig.
6).
Clearly, the short term migration rates of these two bends are not rep-
resentative of the long term averages. This independent short term re-
sponse from almost identical bends under almost identical flow condi-
tions results, the writers believe, from the nonsynchronous accretion of
point bar sediments in each bend. The writers observations of rivers in
British Columbia and Alberta suggest that a typical sequence of events
occurs as follows. A river bend with a well-defined scroll bar at the con-
vex bank experiences a flood flow which causes rapid and substantial
erosion of the concave bank. Sediment supply to this bend is not great,
however, and accretion on the convex bank is slow and much smaller
in volume than the amount eroded on the opposite side of the channel.
As a result of this flood the channel cross section is considerably en-
larged, mainly through the marked increase in channel width. During
the next few floods of similar magnitude to the first in this sequence,
very little erosion occurs at the concave bank because of the locally re-

332

J. Hydraul. Eng., 1983, 109(3): 327-337

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(a)

<b)

FIG. 5.—Aerial Photographs Showing the Remarkable Similarity in Planform of

Bends (a and b) on the Chinchaga River of Northern Alberta

duced velocity and boundary shear associated with the overwide chan-
nel in the bend.
At the same time, however, lateral accretion of the point bar continues
at the convex bank, although at a rate which is considerably less than
the maximum rate of lateral erosion, experienced at the start of the se-
quence. Eventually, in the absence of a very large flood, the channel
width is reduced until the rate of point-bar accretion is limited, not by
sediment supply, but by the maintenance of an equilibrium channel
333

J. Hydraul. Eng., 1983, 109(3): 327-337

 Minaker River

120 -

100- Pembina River

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80- 80

S 60-
> 60
40 j 40-
20
20-

0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 0 20 40 60 80 100 120
Distance ( m ) Distance (m)

Beatton River

320- Chinchaga River

280- 140-

240- 120-

200- 100-

160- " 8 0 -
m
CD
120- >60i

80- 40-

40- 20-

0' ( i
t i i i i 0 i i i i i i
20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 220 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
Distance I m) Distance ( m )

FIG. 6.—Tree Ages Along the Eroslonal Axes of Seven Bends on Four Rivers
Showing the Irregular Nature of Channel Migration

cross section. The river now has a well defined vegetated scroll bar as
a convex bank and the cycle is complete. The next major flood will not
be contained in the now confined channel cross section and concave
bank erosion will be great as once again the channel rapidly adjusts to
accommodate the flow in a larger cross section.
Therefore, a river bend can be in varying states of readiness to migrate
laterally. A flood of a given magnitude will cause a large amount of
lateral migration at one stage in the cycle and perhaps none at the over-
wide stage. Thus, annual lateral migration of river bends is not a con-
tinuous process in space and time; rather it is a process in which the
concave bank rushes ahead only to then stop and wait until the convex
bank catches up before rushing ahead again.
This "concertina-like" pattern of lateral migration is further compli-
cated by local variations in sediment supply and by the suitability of
conditions which allow point bars to form. If a bend is rapidly migrating
it is supplying large amounts of sediment to the bend downstream. This
locally increased sediment supply may induce the downstream bend to
migrate faster by shortening the "catch-up" period in the migration
cycle. The initial erosional disturbance is presumably propagated down-
stream as a damped wave of lateral erosion. Humphrey (4) has identified
some enhancement of migration rates downstream of channel cutoffs,
due most likely to a local increase in sediment supply.
The fact that short-term lateral accretion rates can vary significantly
is well documented in the point-bar vegetation record. For instance, Fig.
334

J. Hydraul. Eng., 1983, 109(3): 327-337

 6 shows several examples of abrupt changes in point-bar vegetation age-
gradients that imply a corresponding change in the rate of lateral accre-
tion at river bends. Only in the long term can rates of lateral accretion
be taken as equal to rates of lateral migration; the short-term lateral ac-
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cretion rate may simply be the rate of channel width adjustment during
the "catch u p " phases in the migration cycle.
Because of the discontinuous nature of channel migration, erosion
pins or time lapsed aerial photography should not be used to measure
short term channel migration rates for predictive purposes. Estimates of
the migration rate of an individual bend using photographs flown only
20 or 30 years apart (the most commonly available in many cases at the
present time) could result in enormous errors in prediction, as is clearly
shown by bends Figs. 5 (a and V) of the Chinchaga River. However, if
an extensive reach of river were to be studied from the same photo-
graphs, and measurements taken of a number of bends, then an average
migration rate for the reach could be obtained. This average value, of
course, would only be representative of the flow conditions prevailing
during the interval of photography and not necessarily representative
of the long term flow record.
Worth noting in this section on discontinuous channel migration is
that the response of cutbank erosion to point-bar growth may have some
positive implications for erosion control. It should be possible to limit
cutbank erosion through progressive excavation of the accumulating
point-bar sediments. This solution may be cheaper and just as effective
as the construction of guide banks or groynes designed to shield the
concave bank. During serious cases of bank erosion both point-bar re-
moval and bank protection could be implemented.

THE RATE OF CHANNEL INCISION ON THE BEATTON RIVER

Our earlier reported incision rate (3) of about 10 mm/yr over the last
250 years for the middle reaches of the Beatton River aroused consid-
erable interest, since it was one of the few estimates of contemporary
rates of incision for an undisturbed river (as opposed to estimates made
over geological time periods). Also, it is the only estimate of contem-
porary natural incision for a river in western Canada. Our calculations
were based on the assumption that the gradual slope of the floodplain
from the oldest surfaces towards the present channel corresponds to the
gradual incision of the river. Nanson in 1980, however, demonstrated
that this slope is caused by continuing overbank sedimentation resulting
in the oldest floodplain surfaces some distance from the channel being
higher than young surfaces near the channel. The floodplain slope,
therefore, is a measure of sediment accumulation and not channel
incision.
That channel incision is still progressing on the Beatton River is evi-
dent along the base of each cutbank where a band of glacial lacustrine
clay is exposed beneath the alluvial deposits of the floodplain. This un-
conformity represents the erosion surface of the former channel thalweg
and provides the means for a reliable estimate of contemporary incision
rates. By comparing the elevation of this surface in cutbanks where the
overlying ridges are of known age [using tree-ring counts of Hickin and
335

J. Hydraul. Eng., 1983, 109(3): 327-337

 Nanson (3)] and the average elevation of the immediately adjacent con-
temporary channel thalweg (currently being eroded into lacustrine clay
with no overlying bed material) the writers obtained incision rates of
1.75 mm/yr, 2.22 mm/yr, and 1.69 mm/yr over the last 400 years for,
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respectively, bends 4, 5, and 6 of the original 1975 study. These calcu-

lations suggest that the mean incision rate is about 2 mm/yr, or about
one-fifth the rate reported earlier.
This revised figure accords with the total amount of incision of about
40 m for this reach of the Beatton River since the end of the glacial pe-
riod, which was approximately 11,000 years BP. Over this period the
average rate has been 3.6 mm/yr. Exposure of bedrock sills, however,
in places along the channel suggest that incision in the late Holocene
has declined and that the writers revised estimate of the modern rate
is realistic.

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

New field data relating bend migration rates with rm/w for the Beatton
River confirm the general form of the relationship the writers described
in 1975, although there is more variance than the initial results sug-
gested. Any predictions, however, of channel migration rates based on
observations from a single reach of river should be seen in the context
of a general lateral migration model. This at least should include stream
power, resistance of bank materials to lateral erosion, the height of the
convex bank, the degree of incision, the sediment supply rate, and the
influence of bend planform.
The discontinuous nature of channel migration means that predictions
of migration rates for individual bends based on short term measure-
ments (say from time lapsed aerial photography over 20 or 30 years) are
highly suspect, although the average rate of migration along a reach of
channel should be possible from such measurements. These short-run
fluctuations in migration rates are implied in the floodplain vegetation
record. They are, most likely, a response to fluctuating channel widths
over time because of a short-term imbalance between the rate of cutbank
erosion and the rate of point-bar sediment accumulation.
Finally, our examination of new evidence for channel incision on the
Beatton River shows the river downcutting at a rate of about 2 mm/yr,
not at 10 mm/yr as the writers reported earlier.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The writers wish to express sincere thanks to Neil Humphrey for

drawing our attention to the anomalous short-term migration rates for
the bends shown in Figs. 5 (a and b) and 6 on the Chinchaga River and
for his critical evaluation of our 1975 work; to the National Science and
Engineering Research Council of Canada for funding this project with
a grant to the second writer; to George Krhoda for his able assistance
in the field; and to the Department of Geography at Simon Fraser Uni-
versity, both for providing transport and equipment for this project, and
for their generous provision of space and facilities to the first writer dur-
ing his period of study leave.

336

J. Hydraul. Eng., 1983, 109(3): 327-337

 APPENDIX.—REFERENCES

1. Hickin, E. J., "The Analysis of River-Planform Responses to Changes in Dis-

charge," River Channel Changes, K. J. Gregory, ed., Wiley, Chichester, En-
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gland, 1977, pp. 249-263.

2. Hickin, E. J., "Hydraulic Factors Controlling Channel Migration," Proceedings
of the 5th Guelph Symposium in Geomorphology, Geomorphology Abstracts, Nor-
wich, England, 1977, pp. 59-66.
3. Hickin, E. J., and Nanson, G. C , "The Character of Channel Migration on
the Beatton River, Northeast British Columbia, Canada," Geological Society
America Bulletin, Vol. 86, 1975, pp. 487-494.
4. Humphrey, N. F., "An Aerial Photographic Study of the Meander Behaviour
of Alluvial Rivers in Northeast British Columbia and Northern Alberta," the-
sis presented to the Department of Geography, University of British Columbia
at Vancouver, British Columbia, in 1978, in partial fulfillment of the require-
ments for the degree of Bachelor of Arts.
5. Nanson, G. C , "Point-Bar and Floodplain Formation of the Meandering Beat-
ton River, Northeastern British Columbia, Canada," Sedimentology, Vol. 27,
1980, pp. 3-29.
6. Nanson, G. C , "A Regional Trend to Meander Migration," Journal of Geology,
Vol. 88, 1980, pp. 100-108.
7. Nanson, G. C , and Beach, H. F., "Forest Succession and Sedimentation on
a Meandering-River Floodplain, Northeast British Columbia, Canada," Journal
of Biogeography, Vol. 4, 1977, pp. 229-251.

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