1102 Relating Rainfall Intensity to Sediment Mobilization in a Mid-Atlantic Watershed

Wednesday, 25 January 2017
4E (Washington State Convention Center )
Margaret M. Orr, Univ. of Delaware, Newark, DE; and R. D. Rowland and S. Inamdar

Precipitation has increased by about 5% in the United States over the past 50 years, with this increasing trend being most predominant in the Northeast (Karl et al 2009).  Among the effects of increased rainfall is increased sedimentation in streams. This study aimed to correlate increased rainfall with increased sediment mobilization in a small watershed located in the Fair Hill Natural Resource Management Area in Cecil Co MD. We used automated ISCO samplers to take water samples in response to rainfall, sediment concentration was calculated, and sediment was dried for further analysis. Hourly rainfall totals from DEOS (Delaware Environmental Observing System) data were compared to corresponding sediment values. Sediment concentrations were positively correlated with rainfall intensity.
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