Impact of frontal systems on estuarine sediment and pollutant dynamics

Abstract

In this paper, a brief description of frontal systems, their modes of occurrence and impact on the estuarine environment, is presented. Previous studies of estuarine fronts have largely focused on the water surface and within the water column. New observations in the Tay Estuary, Scotland have shown that the presence of fronts within the water column may be marked, not only by surface foam bands, but also by abrupt (i.e. non-gradational) changes in the underlying bedform morphology and/or sediment facies, as detected using side-scan sonar. This preliminary evidence suggests that fronts may exert a control, not only on the surface and intra-water column sediment and pollutant partitioning, but also on the distribution and persistence of bedload transport pathways.