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Editor's Highlight
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GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS,
VOL. 34,
L10401,
doi:10.1029/2007GL029472,
2007
Influence of the Three Gorges Dam on downstream delivery of sediment and its environmental implications, Yangtze River
S. L. Yang
State Key Laboratory of Estuarine and Coastal Research, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
J. Zhang
State Key Laboratory of Estuarine and Coastal Research, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
X. J. Xu
State Key Laboratory of Estuarine and Coastal Research, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
Abstract
Water and sediment supplies from ungauged areas were calculated and combined with datasets from gauging stations to establish
sediment budgets. Using sediment budgets and regression relationships, the influence of the Three Gorges Dam (TGD) on downstream
delivery of sediment was quantified. We found that 151 mt/yr (1 mt = 106 tons) of sediment has been retained by TGD since it began operation (2003–2005). In response to this, significant erosion
has occurred in the downstream riverbed. This erosion did not offset the sediment lost in the reservoir, and the sediment
flux into the estuary decreased by 85 mt/yr (31%). This decrease has lead to conversion from progradation to recession in
the delta front. In combination with other anthropogenic impacts, TGD was expected to decrease the sediment flux into the
estuary for centuries, which is of great importance for delta ecosystem and human development.
Received 25
January
2007;
accepted 9
March
2007;
published 17
May
2007.
Keywords: dam;
riverine sediment flux;
Yangtze River;
sediment budget;
delta;
Three Gorges Dam.
Index Terms: 1719 History of Geophysics: Hydrology; 1803 Hydrology: Anthropogenic effects (4802, 4902); 1815 Hydrology: Erosion; 1857 Hydrology: Reservoirs (surface); 1836 Hydrology: Hydrological cycles and budgets (1218, 1655).
Read Full Article (file size: 222244 bytes) Cited by
Citation: Yang, S. L., J. Zhang, and X. J. Xu
(2007),
Influence of the Three Gorges Dam on downstream delivery of sediment and its environmental implications, Yangtze River,
Geophys. Res. Lett.,
34,
L10401,
doi:10.1029/2007GL029472.
Copyright 2007 by the American Geophysical Union.
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