Sediment Deposit Thickness Research Articles

Trapezoidal clapboard array: Innovative approach to vortex suppression in the lateral forebay

In light of the forebay of a lateral pump station in Shaanxi Province, numerical simulation and engineering tests were employed to analyze the correlation between the formation of multiple vortices and sediment deposition in the lateral forebay. Building upon this foundation, a total of 24 distinct rectification measures were proposed to scrutinize the alteration in flow regime within the lateral forebay, followed by an engineering test to validate the optimal scheme in the absence of rectification measures. The findings from the engineering test of the lateral forebay were consistent with the outcomes of the numerical simulation. This marked the inaugural proposition of a trapezoidal array clapboard within a lateral forebay. By adjusting the position, rotating the clapboard angle, and selecting the optimal scheme 24, the flow velocity uniformity at section C1-2 reached 93.16%, the deflection angle measured 94.32°, and the vortex area reduction rate was 87.73%, significantly mitigating the vortex impact on this section. Within section C1-3, the flow velocity uniformity attained 96.58%, the deflection angle measured 86.43°, and the vortex area reduction rate in this section amounted to 81.26%. Through the analysis of these two sections, the scheme's accuracy was validated. Additionally, the sediment deposition thickness decreased by 2.39 m under scheme 24, thus ensuring favorable operational conditions for the inlet forebay of the lateral pump station.

Hydrodynamic effects on the ability of bottom traps to capture nutrient-rich sediments in shallow eutrophic lakes

Hydrodynamics are the key factor influencing sediment resuspension, transport and nutrient release in large shallow lakes. However, the hydrodynamic responses of bottom traps during pollutant capture remain unclear. In this study, a large eutrophic shallow lake was selected to carry out a field test of deep traps at the lake bottom. Based on observations of the lake current around the trap, the sedimentation rate of the particles in the trap and the nutrient content of the captured sediments, combined with the numerical simulation of the waves outside the trap, the effects of lake currents and waves on the sediment deposition in the traps were studied, and the response of the nutrient content of the sediments captured in the deep traps to the changes in lake currents and waves was analyzed. The results showed that the strong hydrodynamic force significantly promoted sediment deposition in the trap and enhanced the ability of the trap to capture sediments with high nutrient contents. The influences of waves and lake currents on the bottom trap capture of polluted sediments varied among different periods. Waves played the leading role in winter and spring, accelerating sediment capture in the bottom traps near the southern shore of eastern Lake Chaohu during this period. In summer, the lake current was the main dynamic factor contributing to the rapid deposition of particulate matter and the capture of sediments with high nutrient contents in the bottom traps of western Lake Chaohu. The multiple stepwise linear regression model based on lake current and wave data explained 37.6 % of the sediment deposition in the trap, and the model built for a single bottom trap explained more than 80 % of the deposition. After correcting the sediment deposition thickness in the trap by considering the water content of the sediment, the quantitative relation yield better inversion results for the sediment deposition process, and different thicknesses in the bottom trap were linked to different sediment deposition periods. According to the hydrodynamic strength in 2020, the thickness of the highly contaminated sediments captured by traps CC1-CC5 was calculated to be 1.09–1.93 m, and the corresponding TN and TP were 26.66–68.53 kg and 6.84–19.89 kg, respectively. This study provides a scientific analysis and guidance for the evaluation of endogenous nutrients captured by lake bottom trap methods.

Simulation of Holocene soil erosion and sediment deposition processes in the Yellow River basin during the Holocene

The Yellow River Basin is ideal for studying fluvial landscape evolution under climate change and human activities. Quantitative reconstruction of soil erosion, sediment transport, and delta deposition in the basin enhances understanding of the dynamic mechanisms of fluvial surface processes. This study reconstructs the spatial and temporal distribution of precipitation and vegetation cover based on geological profile records, paleoclimatic datasets, and historical documentation in the Yellow River basin during the Holocene. A landscape evolution model (Landlab) is introduced to simulate soil erosion and sediment deposition processes. Modeling results show that soil erosion intensity in the middle reaches of the Yellow River was weak during the early and middle Holocene. Since the late Holocene, soil erosion has increased due to vegetation degradation, as the climate became drier, but with more fluctuations. Since 2.0 ka (1 ka = 1,000 calibrated a B.P.), and especially since 1.0 ka, soil erosion in the middle reaches of the Yellow River increased rapidly due to strong human activity, with the intensity-six times higher than the average level before the late Holocene. Average sediment deposition thickness in the lower reach of the Yellow River (North China Plain) was about 2.4 m, and sediment volume was about 3.6 × 1011 m3. The deposition rate and soil erosion intensity showed synchronous changes during the Holocene. Since 2.0 ka, the sediment load and deposition rate have increased rapidly, to 6–10 times higher than in the early and middle Holocene. On this basis, the effects of climate change and human activities on the evolution of the fluvial landscape are discussed.

Sand Bar Evolution Process Numerical Simulation Analyze Based on two Dimensional Numerical Model

The sand bar lies near the entrance to the sea, which is not only detrimental to the flood discharge and sediment discharge of the river, but also an important factor causing the swing the flow path to the sea. With the formation and development of the sand bar, the form of the sand bar is constantly changing, the river is expected to extend continuously, and the water level and velocity of the estuary river change within a certain range, thus affecting the estuary flood control and river management measures. It is of great significance to study the development process of sand bar and its form for flood control of estuarine rivers and to put forward reasonable control measures of the sand bar. The sediment inflow into the sea is calculated by using the validated two - dimensional numerical model of estuarine and rivers. In this paper, the variation and development process of the sediment form with time and space are analyzed from the following aspects: the process of sediment deposition thickness into the sea, the distribution chart of sediment deposition thickness along the direction of water flow into the sea, the process chart of seabed deposition height, the variation of intraday flow velocity along the sea and the analysis of the temporal and spatial variation of sediment concentration, etc. The calculated and analyzed results are consistent with the measured data.

Diaokou River Estuarine Sediment Movement Numerical Simulation Analysis Based on two Dimensional Numerical Model

The sediment movement and deposition diffusion regularity of the Diaokou River are related to the safety and stability of the northern coast and coastal ports of the Yellow River Delta, and the deposition of sediment in the estuary will lead to the extension of the river and the increase of river resistance. As a result, the water level of the Yellow River estuary and the lower reaches of the Yellow River rises, which has a negative impact on the flood control safety of the lower reaches of the Yellow River. Therefore, it is of great significance to study the sediment deposition and diffusion law of the Diaokou River into the sea. Using the verified two-dimensional numerical model of marine sediment of estuary rivers, the sediment movement of Diaokou River into the sea is calculated, and the marine dynamic characteristics such as tidal current and tide in the sea area near the Diaokou River into the sea are analyzed. The spatial and temporal distribution of sediment concentration in sediment movement and the increase of sediment deposition thickness in sediment movement are consistent with the analysis results of measured data.

EXPERIMENTS ON THE DENSITY OF TSUNAMI INUNDATION WATER AND ITS INFLUENCE ON THE TSUNAMI RUN-UP AND DEPOSIT

For the sophistication of the tsunami load, future and historical tsunami scale evaluations, the dependency of the density of tsunami inundation water with sediment on the hydraulic quantities, and then the dependencies of the tsunami run-up distance, sediment deposit distance, mean sediment deposit thickness on the density of the tsunami inundation water are examined through a devised small-scale hydraulic experiment. Within the experimental range of this study, it is verified that the density of the tsunami inundation water depends on the Froude number of the incident tsunami inundation flow and the sediment grain size, and the relative tsunami run-up distance (= the run-up distance of the inundation water with sediment/the run-up distance of the inundation water without sediment (= fresh water)), ratio of the tsunami sediment deposit distance to the tsunami run-up distance, ratio of the mean tsunami sediment deposit thickness to the tsunami sediment deposit distance depend on the density of the tsunami inundation water, and four empirical expressions for those dependencies are proposed.

Relevance of erosion processes when modelling in-channel gravel debris flows for efficient hazard assessment

A storm, composed of two delayed cells, hit the Monte Antelao slopes (Dolomites, North Eastern Italy) in the early morning of July 18th, 2009. The resulting runoff triggered two consecutive debris flows along the Rovina di Cancia channel. The detailed topographic data collected before and just after this event allowed an accurate reconstruction of the morphological changes experienced by the channel bed. These data are here used as benchmark to test the ability of numerical models to reproduce the dynamics of a real event, taking into account the morphology changes of the channel bed. The aim is to provide an efficient model for engineering applications on large scales, such as those required by debris flow hazard assessment. A rainfall-runoff transformation is applied to reconstruct the solid-liquid hydrograph needed for computing the debris flow propagation. Two routing models are used: a GIS-based movable bed model, and a widely used fixed bed model (FLO-2D). Although similar results are obtained in terms of areas subjected to deposition, significant differences emerge in terms of mobilized volumes. Only the simulation of both the deposition and entrainment processes allows to reliably reproduce the sediment volumes estimated from the pre- and post-event topographic data. This information is fundamental in any hazard assessment because the volume of sediment mobilized by debris flow events exerts a fundamental control on the extension of areas subjected to inundation and on the thickness of sediment deposits. The capability to reproduce correctly the mobilized volumes also entails a more reliable simulation of the evolution of the peak and volume of the solid-liquid hydrograph as the debris flow propagates downstream, allowing the identification of the channel reach where banks could be overflowed. Conversely, adopting a fixed bed model leads mainly to an underestimation of the both the transported sediments volumes and the area subjected to deposition. As a consequence, the maximum debris flow depth in the portion of the channel subjected to erosion is underestimated and that in the portion of the channel subjected to deposition is overestimated. All these types of information are of great importance for an effective hazard assessment.

Sediment transport modeling of multiple grain sizes for the 2011 Tohoku tsunami on a steep coastal valley of Numanohama, northeast Japan

The grain size distribution of a tsunami deposit may have a correlation with the tsunami inundation process, and further with the tsunami source characteristics. We test this hypothesis using thickness and grain size distribution data of the 2011 Tohoku tsunami deposit in Numanohama coast, Iwate Prefecture, Japan. Here, we build and validate a tsunami sediment transport model that can simulate deposit thickness and grain size distribution. Our numerical model has three layers: parent (bed), deposit (bed), and suspended load layers. The two bed-layers contain information about the grain size distribution. This numerical model can handle a wide range of grain sizes from 0.063 (4ϕ) to 5.657 mm (−2.5ϕ). The grain size distributions at 12 sample points along a 900 m transect from the beach, through a marsh, and up to the inundation limit, are used to validate the tsunami sediment transport model. We adopt a reference tsunami source model that can well reproduce the observed tsunami run-up heights ranging from 16 to 35 m along the steep valley during the 2011 tsunami. The simulated sand thickness distribution along the transect is consistent with the observed thickness ranging from 3 to 23 cm. The computed net erosion and deposition suggest that most of the sand deposit was originated from the near shore. The shapes of the simulated grain size distributions represented by their sorting, skewness, kurtosis, and mean at most of the sample sites are similar to the observations. The differences between the observed and simulated peak of grain size distributions are less than 1ϕ. To evaluate the sensitivity to the tsunami source model, we test five tsunami scenarios which are modified from the reference source model. While the tsunami scenario with 120% of the reference amplitude can also reproduce the thickness and grain size distribution, the scenarios with amplitudes smaller than 80% of the reference or with wave periods shorter than 50% of the reference source model underestimate the thickness and cannot reproduce the grain size distributions. Our simulation results suggest that it is possible to estimate tsunami wave amplitude and wave period from sediment deposit thickness and grain size distribution data.

Development of group method of data handling based on genetic algorithm to predict incipient motion in rigid rectangular storm water channel

Sediment transport is a revalent vital process in fluvial and coastal environments, and incipient motion is an issue inseparably bound to this topic. This study utilizes a novel hybrid method based on Group Method of Data Handling (GMDH) and Genetic Algorithm (GA) to design GMDH structural (GMDH-GA). Also, SingularValue Decomposition (SVD) was utilized to compute the linear coecient vectors. In order to predict the densimetric Froude number (Fr), the ratio of median diameter of particle size to hydraulic radius (d=R) and the ratio of sediment deposit thickness to hydraulic radius (ts=R) are utilized as e ective parameters. Using three diff erent sources of experimental data and GMDH-GA model, a new equation is proposed to predict incipient motion. The performance of development equation is compared using GMDH-GA and traditional equations . The results indicate that the presented equation is more accurate (RMSE = 0:18 and MAPE = 6:48%) than traditional methods. Also, a sensitivity analysis is presented to study the performance of each input combination in predicting incipient motion.

DEPOSITION THICKNESS AND ITS EFFECT ON CRITICAL SHEAR STRESS FOR INCIPIENT MOTION OF SEDIMENTS

There are evidences in existing literatures suggesting the incipient motion values for any particle size is substantially lower for rigid boundary condition as compared to loose boundary condition. The objective of the current study is to determine the effect of sediment deposition thickness on the critical shear stress for incipient motion. Experimental works for incipient motion were carried out in a rectangular flume with varying sediment deposits thickness. Results showed that the sediment deposits thickness has effect on the critical shear stress at low sediment deposits thickness and the effect will slowly diminish as the sediment deposits thickness increases. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed on the experimental data to develop a new critical shear stress equation. The best regression model has value of 0.69; value of 0.60; value of 0.009 and Mallow’s value of 3.00. The new equation appears to be more consistent as compared to existing incipient motion equations for rigid boundary condition by having 80% of the predicted data falls within the acceptable discrepancy ratio when tested with data from other authors. The new equation can be used to determine critical shear stress values for self-cleansing sewerage design and other related engineering applications

Sediment deposit thickness and its effect on critical velocity for incipient motion.

The understanding of how the sediment deposit thickness influences the incipient motion characteristic is still lacking in the literature. Hence, the current study aims to determine the effect of sediment deposition thickness on the critical velocity for incipient motion. An incipient motion experiment was conducted in a rigid boundary rectangular flume of 0.6 m width with varying sediment deposition thickness. Findings from the experiment revealed that the densimetric Froude number has a logarithmic relationship with both the thickness ratios ts/d and ts/y0 (ts: sediment deposit thickness; d: grain size; y0: normal flow depth). Multiple linear regression analysis was performed using the data from the current study to develop a new critical velocity equation by incorporating thickness ratios into the equation. The new equation can be used to predict critical velocity for incipient motion for both loose and rigid boundary conditions. The new critical velocity equation is an attempt toward unifying the equations for both rigid and loose boundary conditions.

Sediment transport following water transfer from Yangtze River to Taihu Basin

To meet the increasing need of fresh water and to improve the water quality of Taihu Lake, water transfer from the Yangtze River was initiated in 2002. This study was performed to investigate the sediment distribution along the river course following water transfer. A rainfall-runoff model was first built to calculate the runoff of the Taihu Basin in 2003. Then, the flow patterns of river networks were simulated using a one-dimensional river network hydrodynamic model. Based on the boundary conditions of the flow in tributaries of the Wangyu River and the water level in Taihu Lake, a one-dimensional hydrodynamic and sediment transport numerical model of the Wangyu River was built to analyze the influences of the inflow rate of the water transfer and the suspended sediment concentration (SSC) of inflow on the sediment transport. The results show that the water transfer inflow rate and SSC of inflow have significant effects on the sediment distribution. The higher the inflow rate or SSC of inflow is, the higher the SSC value is at certain cross-sections along the river course of water transfer. Higher inflow rate and SSC of inflow contribute to higher sediment deposition per kilometer and sediment thickness. It is also concluded that a sharp decrease of the inflow velocity at the entrance of the Wangyu River on the river course of water transfer induces intense sedimentation at the cross-section near the Changshu hydro-junction. With an increasing distance from the Changshu hydro-junction, the sediment deposition and sedimentation thickness decrease gradually along the river course.

Numerical simulation of sediment deposition thickness at Beidaihe International Yacht Club

The finite element method (FEM) was used to simulate sediment hydrodynamics at the Beidaihe International Yacht Club, and a two-dimensional model was established. The sediment movement and deposition were analyzed under many tidal conditions in conjunction with the hydrological regime of the Daihe River. The peak value of the sediment deposition thickness appears in the main channel and around the estuary. The sediment deposition thickness is essentially constant and relatively small in the project area. The sediment deposition thickness in the main channel, in the yachting area, and around the hotel is greater than the other areas in the project. Regular excavation and dredging of the channel is the best measure for mitigating the sedimentation.

A millennial-long record of warm season precipitation and flood frequency for the North-western Alps inferred from varved lake sediments: implications for the future

The recent warming of the global climate is well recognized. However, does a warmer climate also mean a moister climate? Does dry get drier and wet get wetter? There are important questions as they relate to changes in the water cycle and impacts the water resources as well as the frequency and intensity of storms and floods in the near future. In Europe, regional climate models do not show consistent and robust results for future hydroclimatic changes and how extreme events will evolve in response to future climate change.Paleo-hydroclimatic data from natural archives are one of the few means to assess such changes in the longer context. Here, we present an annually-resolved record of warm season (MJJA) precipitation and summer flood frequency from the varved (annually laminated) sediments of proglacial Lake Oeschinen (46°30′N–7°44′E, 1580 m, NW Swiss Alps) back to AD 884. These data sets are inferred from the thickness of annual sediment deposits and the occurrence of flood event layers in the sediments. The chronology of the sediment record is based on multiple varve counts and validated with historical floods chronicled in written documents (back to the 14th century) and 14C AMS dates.The precipitation record shows pronounced interannual to centennial variability with humid warm season phases between AD 920–950, AD 1100–1180, AD 1300–1400, AD 1590–1650, AD 1700–1790, AD 1820–1880, and AD 1960–2008. Driest conditions are reconstructed for AD 960–1080, AD 1250–1300 and for AD 1880–1900. Our precipitation record is consistent with the few multi-centennial warm-season precipitation records available for Europe.We did not find a persistent relationship between warm-season precipitation and temperature. In contrast, results show that the relation between precipitation and temperature has oscillated between positive correlations (warmer gets wetter, cooler gets drier) and negative correlations (warmer gets drier, cooler gets wetter) with a highly significant (χ2 = 99%) multidecadal (60–70 yrs) periodicity over the last millennium. Possible explanations for this phenomenon are changes in the weather type statistics or the within-weather-type variability, which influence the combinations between precipitation and temperature over continental central Europe and operate at multidecadal scales. Such multidecadal effects might also be important for precipitation scenarios in the Alpine area under future warming.Our record of flood frequency suggests more frequent floods under cool and humid climate during the warm seasons. This picture is consistent with other studies from small and medium size catchments at mid- and high elevations in the Alpine area. However, the 13th century reveals a period with high flood frequency during warm and moderately dry (average precipitation) conditions. This anomalous situation is currently not understood; nonetheless, this is also one out of several possible scenarios for the future. From the different combinations found in our record, we conclude that the relation between floods, precipitation and temperature and, in consequence, future projections remain poorly constrained.

Impact of Water-Sediment Exchange on Underwater Terrain Shaping Process for a Tide-Influenced Waterfront Lake

AbstractThis study selected a typical waterfront lake, the Inner Lake, as the research area. Based on field measurements and laboratory experiments, the basic properties of sediment particles were analyzed, including size, bulk and dry bulk density, and hydrostatic and hydrodynamic settling velocity. With the finite-volume method, the flux vector splitting (FVS) scheme was employed to establish a two-dimensional unsteady flow and sediment mathematical model. The underwater terrain shaping processes in the short term (2017), middle term (2020), and long term (2025) were predicted. The results showed that sediment deposition thickness will significantly increase in the Inner Lake, reaching 13.5 cm in the short term (January 2017), 28.6 cm in the middle term (January 2020), and 55.2 cm in the long term (January 2025). Owing to the strong hydrodynamic condition of the Leading Channel, sediment deposition there is the lowest, with the lake bed elevating rate at 3.92 cm·a−1 on average. The elevating rate at th...

Modeling Sediment Transport and River Bed Evolution in River System

The problem of sedimentation has significant impacts on the operation lifetime of the reservoir. A two dimensional numerical model has been developed to simulate the transport of sediment and the evolution of the river bed in river system. The model consists of hydrodynamic equations, sedimentological equations and bed deformation equations. Water-sediment conditions and the abrupt change of water level and flow, which are influenced by gate dams, were emphatically considered in the simulation. The field measurements of erosion-sedimentation thickness of 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 in three sections are used for the model validation and the simulation results agree with the measurements well. The model is applied to simulate the process of sediment deposition at the upper reaches of Three Gorges Reservoir Region. The model results can reflect the detailed changes of sediment deposition thickness of river channel in the next 70 year.

Verification of equations for incipient motion studies for a rigid rectangular channel

The current study aims to verify the existing equations for incipient motion for a rigid rectangular channel. Data from experimental work on incipient motion from a rectangular flume with two different widths, namely 0.3 and 0.6 m, were compared with the critical velocity value predicted by the equations of Novak & Nalluri and El-Zaemey. The equation by El-Zaemey performed better with an average discrepancy ratio value of 1.06 compared with the equation by Novak & Nalluri with an average discrepancy ratio value of 0.87. However, as the sediment deposit thickness increased, the equation by El-Zaemey became less accurate. A plot on the Shields Diagram using the experimental data had shown the significant effect of the sediment deposit thickness where, as the deposit becomes thicker, the dimensionless shear stress θ value also increased. A new equation had been proposed by incorporating the sediment deposit thickness. The new equation gave improved prediction with an average discrepancy ratio value of 1.02.

Investigating sediments and rock structures beneath a river using underwater ERT

AbstractThis article presents hydrogeophysical investigations performed in a well-developed, long-term hydrogeological gypsum karst research site where subsurface evaporite dissolution has led to the subsidence of a river dam and an adjacent highway; both constructed on gypsum-containing rock, southeast of Basel, Switzerland. An observation system was set up to improve the protection of surface and subsurface water resources during remedial construction measures of the highway and in order to understand the processes, as well as the temporal evolution, of rock water interaction (flow and dissolution).However, no detailed hydrogeological information beneath the river could be derived from the previous investigations. To supplement the basic knowledge on this area, underwater Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) measurements were conducted in the river bed upstream of the dam. The ERT-data are interpreted together with drill-core information and a conceptual 3D-Model of the area behind the dam and beneath the river. Results help to delineate weathered zones, associated faults and the thickness of sediment deposits behind the dam, as well as to locate voids within the local karst system. The combination of the ERT and modeling allows the optimization of future site-specific remedial construction measures.

Nearshore Tsunami Inundation Model Validation: Toward Sediment Transport Applications

Model predictions from a numerical model, Delft3D, based on the nonlinear shallow water equations are compared with analytical results and laboratory observations from seven tsunami-like benchmark experiments, and with field observations from the 26 December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. The model accurately predicts the magnitude and timing of the measured water levels and flow velocities, as well as the magnitude of the maximum inundation distance and run-up, for both breaking and non-breaking waves. The shock-capturing numerical scheme employed describes well the total decrease in wave height due to breaking, but does not reproduce the observed shoaling near the break point. The maximum water levels observed onshore near Kuala Meurisi, Sumatra, following the 26 December 2004 tsunami are well predicted given the uncertainty in the model setup. The good agreement between the model predictions and the analytical results and observations demonstrates that the numerical solution and wetting and drying methods employed are appropriate for modeling tsunami inundation for breaking and non-breaking long waves. Extension of the model to include sediment transport may be appropriate for long, non-breaking tsunami waves. Using available sediment transport formulations, the sediment deposit thickness at Kuala Meurisi is predicted generally within a factor of 2.

Sediment and Nutrient Deposition Associated with Hurricane Wilma in Mangroves of the Florida Coastal Everglades

The distribution of mangrove biomass and forest structure along Shark River estuary in the Florida Coastal Everglades (FCE) has been correlated with elevated total phosphorus concentration in soils thought to be associated with storm events. The passage of Hurricane Wilma across Shark River estuary in 2005 allowed us to quantify sediment deposition and nutrient inputs in FCE mangrove forests associated with this storm event and to evaluate whether these pulsing events are sufficient to regulate nutrient biogeochemistry in mangrove forests of south Florida. We sampled the spatial pattern of sediment deposits and their chemical properties in mangrove forests along FCE sites in December 2005 and October 2006. The thickness (0.5 to 4.5 cm) of hurricane sediment deposits decreased with distance inland at each site. Bulk density, organic matter content, total nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations, and inorganic and organic P pools of hurricane sediment deposits differed from surface (0–10 cm) mangrove soils at each site. Vertical accretion resulting from this hurricane event was eight to 17 times greater than the annual accretion rate (0.30 ± 0.03 cm year−1) averaged over the last 50 years. Total P inputs from storm-derived sediments were equivalent to twice the average surface soil nutrient P density (0.19 mg cm−3). In contrast, total N inputs contributed 0.8 times the average soil nutrient N density (2.8 mg cm−3). Allochthonous mineral inputs from Hurricane Wilma represent a significant source of sediment to soil vertical accretion rates and nutrient resources in mangroves of southwestern Everglades. The gradient in total P deposition to mangrove soils from west to east direction across the FCE associated with this storm event is particularly significant to forest development due to the P-limited condition of this carbonate ecosystem. This source of P may be an important adaptation of mangrove forests in the Caribbean region to projected impacts of sea-level rise.