Inleiding Tot Mens-Omgewings-Sisteme: Introduction To Human-Environmental Systems

Arts and Social Sciences | EyeAthsi neNzululwazi ngeNtlalo | Lettere en Sosiale Wetenskappe
GEO124
INLEIDING TOT MENS-OMGEWINGS-SISTEME
INTRODUCTION TO HUMAN-ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEMS
Lesing: Rivier morfologie en eienskappe van rivierstelsels

Lecture : River morphometry, transportation and deposition
Drainage basin system
• Horton’s laws of ‘drainage composition’

• Law of stream order states within drainage basin a constant
geometric relationship exists between stream order and stream
number
• Streams of a different order
Stream order
Stream order rules
1. The higher the order, the less of those streams would be in a

drainage basin (#);
2. Higher order streams are longer than low order streams
(length);
3. Low order streams have steeper gradients than high order
streams (gradient/relief);
4. Higher order streams drain larger areas if the total drainage
basin (area)
Basin comparison
• It is possible to compare river basins in terms of

−Bifurcation ratio
• Relationship between number of streams of one order to
number of streams of next highest order
• Next find the mean of all ratios in the basin being studied
𝑁𝑁𝑁 𝑁𝑁𝑁 𝑁𝑁𝑁
+ +( )
• E.g. Bifurcation ratio = 𝑁𝑁𝑁 𝑁𝑁𝑁 𝑁𝑁𝑁
3
Basin comparison
Drainage density
• Drainage density
𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇 𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙𝑙 𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠𝑠 (𝐿𝐿)
=
𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇𝑇 𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎𝑎 𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜 𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑 𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏𝑏 (𝐴𝐴)
−Calculated by measuring the total length of all the steams

with a basin (L) and dividing by the area of whole basin (A)
−Number of factors shape drainage density
−Highest in areas where land surface is impermeable,
slopes are steep, rainfall heavy and prolonged and
vegetation lacking
Drainage density
• Influenced by
−Geology and soils
• Rock/soil porous & permeable allow more infiltration, less
surface streams
−Land use
• Dense vegetation, more infiltration, low density
−Precipitation
• High rainfall = high density
−Relief
• Steep slopes, high density
Some terminology
• River long profile: The long profile is the course a river takes
from the source to the mouth-often split into upper course and
lower course
• River bed: bottom of river
• Gradient: How steep something is
• Velocity: the speed the river is travelling
• Cross-section: the cross-section of the river – the width of the
river times the depth of river
• Discharge: Amount of water being carried by river
River form: Type of flows
• Water flows along path of least resistance i.e. river possess

potential energy and follows route maximize rate of flow
(velocity) and minimize loss of energy caused by friction
• Two patterns of flow:

-Laminar flow: horizontal movement water; flow would travel
over sediment without disturbing it
-Turbulent flow: both vertical and horizontal in downstream
direction (dominant)
River form: Type of flows

Transportation
• Transported material referred to as river’s load

• Rivers can transport material downstream and deposit it when
energy is no longer sufficient to move the material
• 3 main mechanisms for transportation
−Suspended load
−Dissolved (solution) load
−Bedload
Transportation
• Suspended load: Fine particles of clay silt are dislodged and

carried by turbulence in fast flowing river
• Material held in suspension usually forms greatest part of total
load
• Usually increases at mouth river giving water brown/black
colour
Transportation
• Dissolved or solution load: If river bedrock really soluble

e.g.limestone its constantly dissolved in water and removed as
solution
• Bedload: Occurs two ways i.e. saltation and traction
• Saltation: pepples, sand, gravel lifted temporarily by current and
bounced along bed in hopping motion;
• Traction: largest cobbles and boulders roll or slide along bed
(flood)
River competence and capacity
• Competence
−Maximum size of material a river can transport
• Capacity
−Total load a river can transport
• Corrasion
−Material in river rubs against bedrock or river beds/banks
and wears them away by abrasion
River erosive processes
• Attrition
−Bedload moves downstream colliding with other rocks and
breaking apart
• Hydraulic action
−Water creates stress on river banks and in time collapse
• Corrosion
−Dissolution of bedrock etc.
• Velocity is reduced and no longer has competence or

capacity carry load. Starting with the larger particles,
materials begin to deposit.
Occurs when:
- Discharge is reduced following period low precipitation
- Velocity lessened on entering sea
- Load is suddenly increased (perhaps caused by debris from
landslide)
- River overflows banks so that velocity outside channel is lost
• As river loses energy some changes:

- Heaviest of bedload material deposited first
- Gravel, sand, silt carried further to be deposited over floodplain
- Finest particles, silt and clay may be deposited where river
meets sea
- Dissolved loads will not be deposited but carried out to sea and
help maintain saltiness of oceans.
Fluvial landforms
• Fluvial landforms form as a result of various processes including

−Erosion
−Deposition
• They are also dependent on a variety of factors (that influence
these processes)
Erosive landforms
• Valleys
• Interlocking spurs
• Waterfalls
• Rapids
Valleys
• Occurs when channel of river &upper course has large wetted perimeter
(large bedload) which uses much energy
• During high discharge periods –as water flows between boulders
turbulence increases and material rolled or bounced along river bed
• Result is vertical erosion where river creates steep sided valley, typically V
shape
• Steepness of valley dependent on:
− Climate (rainfall)
− Underlying rock structure
− Vegetation
Valleys
Interlocking spurs
• Interlocking spurs formed because river forced to follow

winding course around protrusions of surrounding highland
• As spurs interlock views up and down valley is restricted
Interlocking spurs
Waterfalls
• River flowing over resistant rock meets less resistant rock or

flows over a plateau
• Over time softer rock is worn away as water falls on it & harder
rock become undercut and may over time collapse
• Erosion occurs at base of waterfall where plunge pool form
Waterfalls
Waterfalls
Rapids
• Rapids are sections of rough turbulent (white water) water

• Normally in a river's upper course and are formed when you get layers of
hard and soft rock (soft rock erode quicker than the layers of hard rock)
• Makes the bed of the river uneven creating rough turbulent water
• Popular with tourist- river rafting
Depositional landforms
• Sudden changes in velocity can result in deposition

• Floodplains
• Levees
• Braiding
• Deltas
Levees
• During flooding velocity first high, but will decrease as water

flows out over gradient of floodplain
• With sudden decrease velocity, coarser grained material
deposited along riverbank building up natural levee
• Natural levee provide some protection from flooding, with each
flood embankment is built higher, therefore discharge must be
higher for next flood to occur
• Levees can also artificially be enhanced by engineering to
strengthen them
Levees
Natural levee Man-made levee

Braiding
• When rivers have a large load for short periods and velocity
falls, they deposit load and channel becomes choked up with
material causing river to braid i.e.
* Divide into series of diverging and converging segments
Deltas
• Thought that shape resembled fourth letter of Greek alphabet

• Deltas are areas of deposition when river loses energy and flows
into a slow moving area-mouth(→sea)
• If river deposits quicker than sea can erode-delta forms
• Grouped into 3 basic shapes of delta:
−Arcuate: rounded, convex outer margin
−Cuspate: material deposited evenly on either side
−Bird’s foot: river has many tributaries, bounded by sediment
and extends out to sea like bird claw
Deltas
Dual process landforms (erosion and deposition)
• Pools
• Riffles
• Meanders
• Point bars
• Oxbow lakes
Meanders, Pools and Riffles
• How meanders form uncertain and may appear to have origins

in flooding
• Rivers very rarely follow a straight line path, instead they
meander in a sinusoidal fashion towards the ocean
• Pools – areas of deep water
• Riffles – areas of shallow water
• Pools will be areas of greater erosion while energy is dissipated
across riffle areas.
Meanders, point bars and oxbow lakes
• Meanders has asymmetrical cross-section formed by erosion on outside

bend (where discharge and velocity are greatest and friction limited) and
deposition on inside (where discharge and velocity are at minimum and
friction greatest)
• Material deposited on convex inside of bend take form of curving point bar
• As erosion continues on outer bend, whole meander slowly migrates
downstream
• Over time the sinuosity (bend) of meander becomes so pronounced, during
a flood the river cuts through narrow neck land-shortening course
• Deposition takes place, old curve of river abandoned resulting in an oxbow
lake


Larger particles deposited upstream
Smaller particles deposited downstream

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Arts and Social Sciences | EyeAthsi neNzululwazi ngeNtlalo | Lettere en Sosiale Wetenskappe

INTRODUCTION TO HUMAN-ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEMS

Lesing: Rivier morfologie en eienskappe van rivierstelsels

Drainage basin system

• Horton’s laws of ‘drainage composition’

Stream order rules

1. The higher the order, the less of those streams would be in a

• It is possible to compare river basins in terms of

−Calculated by measuring the total length of all the steams

River form: Type of flows

• Water flows along path of least resistance i.e. river possess

• Two patterns of flow:

River form: Type of flows

• Transported material referred to as river’s load

• Suspended load: Fine particles of clay silt are dislodged and

• Dissolved or solution load: If river bedrock really soluble

River competence and capacity

River erosive processes

River erosive processes

• Velocity is reduced and no longer has competence or

River erosive processes

• As river loses energy some changes:

• Fluvial landforms form as a result of various processes including

• Interlocking spurs formed because river forced to follow

• River flowing over resistant rock meets less resistant rock or

• Rapids are sections of rough turbulent (white water) water

• Sudden changes in velocity can result in deposition

• During flooding velocity first high, but will decrease as water

Natural levee Man-made levee

• Thought that shape resembled fourth letter of Greek alphabet

Dual process landforms (erosion and deposition)

Meanders, Pools and Riffles

• How meanders form uncertain and may appear to have origins

Meanders, point bars and oxbow lakes

• Meanders has asymmetrical cross-section formed by erosion on outside

Meanders, point bars and oxbow lakes

Meanders, point bars and oxbow lakes

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