Abstract
The research focusing on the trends of the streamflow and suspended sediment, as well as on the controls involved in these changes, are currently topics of significant interest in fluvial geomorphology. In this context, the aim of this study is to analyze the trends of the streamflow discharge and the sediment load based on a geomorphological approach of the relations between the two variables. These trends were assessed based on three testing methods frequently employed in hydro-geomorphological studies (Mann–Kendall trend test, Șen's slope estimator and the innovative trend method) applied on data from 10 gauging stations located on major tributaries of Trotuș River. Results reveal an overall downward trend of the mean annual streamflow and an increasing trend of the mean annual suspended sediment load. Whereas the decreasing streamflow trend was linked to the diminishing precipitation amounts, the upward trend of suspended sediment load was related to the changes occurring within river channels as a result of flood events.
Highlights
Rivers are regarded as major links between continents and oceans and play a crucial role in the manifestation of geological, geomorphic, hydrological, biological and chemical processes occurring at the surface of the crust (Milliman and Meade, 1983; Walling and Fang, 2003)
Dan Dumitriu affected by climate changes, primarily through the shifts occurring in precipitation and temperature regimes, which further interfere with the streamflow discharge (Vorosmarty et al 2000)
This study set out to analyze from a geomorphic viewpoint the trends of the streamflow and sediment load characteristic for the major tributaries of river Trotuș
Summary
Rivers are regarded as major links between continents and oceans and play a crucial role in the manifestation of geological, geomorphic, hydrological, biological and chemical processes occurring at the surface of the crust (Milliman and Meade, 1983; Walling and Fang, 2003). Anthropogenic activities are believed to have disrupted to a significant degree the spatial and temporal evolution of water resources pertaining to more than half of the major fluvial systems on Earth (Liu et al 2005). Research tackling the trends of streamflow discharge and sediment load in certain drainage basins is often addressed in hydrogeomorphological studies (Guo et al 2018; Dey and Mishra, 2017). These studies are of great relevance both scientifically and practically especially in the fields of water resources management, flood protection and the rivers management (Barnett et al 2005)
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