Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID 2014NY208B

Pairing LIDAR, terrestrial laser scanning, and aerial photographs to make estimates of channel erosion due to large storm events

Institute: New York
Year Established: 2014 Start Date: 2014-03-01 End Date: 2015-02-28
Total Federal Funds: $17,523 Total Non-Federal Funds: $35,549

Principal Investigators: Stephen Shaw, Lindi Quackenbush

Project Summary: Water with high suspended sediment loads can require additional treatment when used for drinking water. Suspended sediment is also often a carrier of nutrients such as phosphorus that can lead to eutrophication. Additionally, deposited sediment can disrupt stream habitat of aquatic organisms and can ultimately require removal by dredging in larger navigable water bodies. Thus, there exists a strong interest to understand sediment sources and transport processes in the Hudson River watershed, particularly in light of recent large storms such as Superstorm Sandy. This work would help answer the fundamental question of whether sediment transported to main channels within the Hudson River watershed during storms predominantly originates from upland areas due to surface erosion or whether it originates from remobilization of bed material stored in upland stream channels.