FRM/EDPD/538

CARIBBEAN EXAMINATIONS COUNCIL

CARIBBEAN SECONDARY EDUCATION CERTIFICATE *

SCHOOL BASED ASSESSMENT

COVER SHEET FOR GEOGRAPHY

NAME OF CENTRE: TPINI TY ^C'££EGE EAR CENTRE CODE : I F^I 96 YEAR OF EXAM: 2P'2P

NAME OF CANDIDATE : IAPEtAH 0 4THAM CANDIDATE’S REGTSTPAT!ON NUMBER: '1*83

Ques Teacher‘s
Question
Mark
1 Table of Contents (1mark) 1
Introduction (2 marks)
Aim of Field Study (2 marks)
Location of Field Study (4 marks)
Methodology (4 marks)

6 Presentation of Data (4 marks)

Quality of Data (4 marks)
8 Analysis and Discussion (10 marks) 10
9 Conclusion (4 marks)

10 Communication of Information (4 marks)

11 Bibliography (1 mark) 1
TOTAL (40 Marks) 40

Teacher‘s Signature' : Date: T 3/03/20

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edi tobie RDF forms.

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Year of Examination: 2020
Subject: Geography
Candidate’s Number: 1601961283
Candidate’s Name: Jarrah Oatham
Title of Study: River Processes and Features
Name of Teacher: Colette Nelson
 APPENDIX 1
GEOGRAPHY FIELD
STUDY STRATEGY
SHEET
To be completed by 15 March of the year of the examination (but preferably in
Fourth Year). Make a duplicate copy of this sheet. Your teacher will return a copy
to you.
CANDIDATE’S NAME: Jarrah Oatham REGISTRATION NUMBER: CLASS:
1283 5D
GENERAL TOPIC OF INTEREST: Rivers
1. (a) POSSIBLE QUESTION TO BE INVESTIGATED: How does the river
being in a meander or straight affect its characteristics. (Specific
Objective#22 (a), Natural Systems).
(b) Location of Study Area: Lopinot (Arouca) River, Lopinot, Trinidad and Tobago.

STRATEGY

A. What is the Aim of your Study?

To investigate the formation of river features in the middle upper course of Lopinot
River.
B. How will you obtain data?

1. Collecting results from various tests done at the location of study.

2. Field trip to the area of study to Lopinot (Arouca) River, Lopinot, Trinidad and
Tobago.
3. Draw sketch maps and take photographs.
4. Review secondary sources: for example, guides on river field work.
C. Resources:
2 poles, string, balance, level, wind ball, stop watch, meter rule, measuring tape.

D. How do you intend to present the data and findings in your report?

1. Location maps of the area of study: Lopinot (Arouca) River, Lopinot,

Trinidad and Tobago.
2. Illustrate data using tables and graphs.
3. Illustrate with annotated photographs.
E. Analyse and Discuss Data:
Analyse and discuss the relationships between the width, depth, velocity and
gradient in the meander and straight of the river.

ANTICIPATED CHALLENGES: It may rain while the tests are being done.

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS: To ensure it does not rain while results are being taken, we
can check the forecast and choose a day where it is clear.

Teacher’s Name COLETTE NELSON Teacher’s Signature

Table of Contents

Contents
Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 1
Aim .................................................................................................................................... 2
Location of Study ............................................................................................................... 3
Methodology ...................................................................................................................... 5
Presentation and Analysis of Data: .................................................................................... 6
Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 12
Bibliography .................................................................................................................... 13
Appendix ......................................................................................................................... 14

4
Introduction:
This study investigates the characteristics of the Lopinot River. Lopinot River is located in
the north of Trinidad, in the centre of the base of the northern range. A river is a stream of
water which flows over or under land usually from higher areas to lower areas. Rivers are
made of three main stages: the youthful stage, the mature stage and the old stage.
In this study, the mature stage of the river is examined in the characteristics of width, depth,
velocity and gradient. Two points were chosen to study in the river, a straight point and a
meandered point. The area was muddy and damp when the results were taken as it had
recently rained. The left side of the river had many trees and plants with a thin bank while the
right sand had a larger bank and further bank after a small cliff upwards there was a piece of
flat land.
I chose this topic as rivers are one of the main factors contributing to the usefulness and value
of land. A river which floods often may not be useful to someone looking to build a house but
may be very useful to a farmer who wants to grow crops like rice. It is important that rivers
are studied in order to understand their behaviour so that incidents like frequent flooding in
residential areas due to the river do not occur.

1
Aim:
To explain the formation of river features in the middle upper course of Lopinot River.

2
Location of Study:

Figure 2: Map of Trinidad showing location of study

3
Figure 1: Sketch Map of Location of Study

4
Methodology:
Stream Width:
The distance the water occupied in the river’s channel was measured, this was repeated 50cm
downstream.
Bank full Width:
The width of the river’s channel was measured; this was repeated 50cm downstream.
Wetted Width:
The wetted width of the river was measured; this was repeated 50cm downstream.
Water Depth:
The meter rule was inserted into the water and ensured that it was touching the river’s bed
with the edge of the ruler facing upstream. The depth of the water was recorded. This process
was done for the right side, middle and left side of the river.
River Velocity:
A distance of 5m was measured, a float was released in the water and the time taken for the
float to travel the 5m was measured and recorded. This process was repeated 5 times in the
right side, middle and left side of the river.

Gradient:
A distance of 5m was measured and tow stakes were placed at each end. A string was used to
create a level between the stakes. The height between the string and the earth’s surface was
measured and recorded. This process was repeated for the opposite bank.

Where:
This study was conducted along the upper middle course of the Arouca (Lopinot) River, at
Lopinot, Trinidad.

When:
Data was collected on 15th October 2019, between 10:00am and 1:00pm.

5
Presentation and Analysis of Data:
River Velocity
Straight
1st 2nd 3rd 4th Average
recording(m/s) recording(m/s) recording(m/s) recording(m/s) (m/s)
Right Side 0.237 0.259 0.242 0.197 0.246
Middle 0.332 0.271 0.221 0.272 0.276
Left Side 0.189 0.215 0.153 0.222 0.195
Figure 3: Table showing the velocity on the straight.
Meander
1st 2nd 3rd 4th Average(
recording(m/s) recording(m/s) recording(m/s) recording(m/s) m/s)
Right Side 0 0 0 0 0
Middle 0 0 0 0 0
Left Side 0.117 0.154 0.195 0.128 0.148
Figure 4: Table showing the velocity on the meander.
The data above shows that in the straight, the water flows throughout the river but flows
faster on the edges, it also shows that the water flows most quickly in the centre and the
slowest on the left. In the meander the water is close to stand still in the centre and right side,
but flows very quickly on the left showing that the meander is most likely turning to the right
as water in a meander flows most quickly in the outside bank. The meander’s velocity is quite
different from the straight’s in that in the straight, the water flows throughout the river while
in the meander the flow is restricted to the outer bank. This may lead to features such as
meanders and a trough forming on the side of the river which moves faster.

Gradient
Height on Steak 1/cm Height on Steak 2/cm Gradient/degrees
Left Bank 7.5 6.5 0.802
Right Bank 14.0 11.5 1.461
Figure 5: Table showing the data to find gradient.
The gradient of the river is 0.802 degrees on the left bank and 1.461 degrees on the right
bank. Though the gradient in very gentle throughout the river the values for the gradient show
that the river is sloping slightly more steeply to the right and shallower to the left. The
gradient on the right side can be steeper due to many reasons such as the materials the
riverbed was made of, the natural topography of the land and even because of its faster
erosion rate due to the water moving faster over its steeper surface.

River Width

6
Straight
1st Reading/cm 2nd Reading/cm Average/cm
Stream Width 660 661 661
Bankfull Width 1200 1298 1249
Wetted Width 1062 1060 1061
Total Average = 990
Figure 6: Table showing the widths of the river on the straight.
Meander
1st Reading/cm 2nd Reading/cm Average
Stream Width 305 330 318
Bankfull Width 657 658 658
Wetted Width 356 361 359
Total Average = 445
Figure 7: Table showing the widths of the river on the meander.
The widths of the river show that in all three categories (stream width, bankfull width and
wetted width) the straight is significantly wider. This could be because the water velocity in
the straight is fast in the left, middle and right meaning that both the left and right banks are
eroded but in the meander only the left bank is eroded resulting in the river being less wide at
the meander.

River Depth
Straight
50cm 100cm 150cm 200cm 250cm 300cm 350cm 400cm 450cm 500cm
Depth/cm 1.0 2.3 5.0 4.2 4.5 3.9 4.0 5.0 6.6 1.0
Figure 8: Table showing the depth of the river on the straight.
Meander
50cm 100cm 150cm 200cm 250cm 300cm 350cm 400cm 450cm 500cm
Depth/cm 12.1 14.2 11.0 7.6 5.2 3.5 0 0 0 0
Figure 9: Table showing the depth of the river on the meander.
The depth on the straight shows that the river is in a shallow “U” curve with more sediment
on the left while the depth on the meander show that the bed is slanting upwards towards the
right. This is most likely because of the much faster velocity on the left causing the bed to
erode more quickly and hence it is deeper, this is called a trough. The meander also has a
deeper maximum depth because the velocity on its left side is faster than anywhere on the
straight.

7
Figure 10: Graph of Depth on Straight

8
The graph shows that the sediment in the straight is deposited in the centre and left side of the
riverbed. This is probably because this is where the velocity is lowest.

Figure 11: Graph of Depth on Meander

9
This shows that the sediment is deposited in the centre and right side of the river. This is
probably because the only place the river flows in the meander is on the right.

Figure 12: Sketch of the straight’s cross section

10
Figure 13: Sketch of the meander’s cross section

11
Conclusion:
Water flows throughout the river in the straight unlike in the meander where the water only
flows on the left side. In the straight, the water flows slowly on the left and much faster in the
middle and right, this can lead to river features such as meanders and troughs. The gradient
on the right side of the river is steeper than on the left side, this is probably because the water
flows faster on the right side meaning the bed is eroded faster. This helps in the formation of
troughs. The river is much wider in the straight compared to the meander. This is because the
river flows on both the left and right side meaning both sides are eroded while in the meander
only one side is eroded. The depth on the straight is more “U” shaped than in the meander
which is mainly deep on the left side and there is a steep slope going upwards to the left. This
shows that the water flows much faster on the left of the meander than on the right where it is
stagnant leading to the formation of a trough on the left, these readings may have error due to
the lack of water in the river. The graphs show that the sediment in the straight is on the
centre and left of the riverbed indicating that the river flows fastest on the right in this part of
the river while in the meander the sediment is on the centre and right indicating the river
flows fastest on the left in the part of the river. This study can be improved by taking the
results multiple times and finding the average as well as increasing the range of investigation.

12
Bibliography:
 Wilson, M. The Caribbean Environment, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2016.
 Certificate Atlas for the Caribbean, London, Philip’s, 2011.
 Ames, H. (2019, March 2). Factors Affecting a River's Velocity. Retrieved January
20, 2020, from https://sciencing.com/factors-affecting-rivers-velocity-8223150.html
 Nelson, C. (2020, January 19th). Email.

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Appendix:

SBA Calculations

The data that you have collected on the field trip would be used for these calculations.

River Velocity

This is the table from the data sheet that you completed on your Field Trip

1st Recording 2nd Recording 3rd Recording 4th Recording

(secs) (secs) (secs) (secs)
Right side 12 20 15 14
Middle
Left side

There are two options to calculate velocity. Use any of the following options.

Option 1

Velocity = distance/time

= 5m/12 secs (from table: Right side 1st recording)

= 0.4166 m/sec

Option 2

Distance ball travelled in 12 secs (from table)

= 5 m Distance ball travelled in 1 sec = 5m/12

secs

= 0.4166 m/sec

Repeat calculations for all the recordings in the table above and insert in a table below

1st Recording 2nd Recording 3rd Recording 4th Recording Average

(m/sec) (m/sec) (m/sec) (m/sec) (m/sec)
Right side 0.4166 0.2500 0.3333 0.3571 0.3392
Middle
Left side

The average is obtained by adding the velocities for the four recordings and dividing by 4.

Average = (0.4166 + 0.2500 + 0.3333 + 0.3571) / 4

14
 = 1.3570 / 4
= 0.3392
N.B. Use your own the data you have collected to perform these

calculations River Gradient

Height on Stake (cm) Height on Stake (cm)

Left Bank 10 12
Right Bank

Diagram of slope

We would like to find angle α in the right angle triangle ABC.

AC is the hypotenuse, BC (10cm) is the opposite and AB (5m) is the

adjacent. Using trigonometry we can calculate α.

Since we know the lengths of BC (10cm) (opposite) and AB (5m) (adjacent) we would use tan.
(SOHCAHTOA)

tan α = opposite / adjacent

= 10 cm / 5m

We must have the same units therefore we would convert 5m

to cm. tan α = 10cm / 500cm

tan α = 0.02

α = tan -1 (0.02)

= 1.15⁰

Repeat calculations for all the recordings in the table above and insert in a table below

15
Calculate the average by adding the gradients of the two recordings and

dividing by 2 Average = 1.15 + 1.37 / 2 = 2.52 / 2 = 1.26⁰

1st recording 2nd recording Averag

Gradient (⁰) Gradient (⁰) e
(⁰)
Left Bank 1.15 1.37 1.26
Right Bank

River Width

Insert the data from the data sheet into the table below

Calculate the average by adding the widths of the three recordings and dividing by 3

1st Recording 2nd Recording 3rd Recording Average (cm)

(cm) (cm) (cm)
Stream Width
Bankfull Width
Wetted
Perimeter

River Depth

Insert the data from the data sheet into the table below

Right Side Middle Left Side

Depth (cm)

16