River bank erosion along the Nashwaak River
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Date
2005
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Publisher
University of New Brunswick
Abstract
River bank erosion is a naturally occurring process wherein the surface material along
the edge of the water is removed, entrapped, transported, and deposited down stream.
Because of recent development along the Nashwaak River, vegetation has been
removed from the banks, resulting in increased river bank erosion rates. Presently
permanent engineering structures including riprap and cement walls are being used to
prevent erosion, but these methods are not ideal. These permanent structures allow
the water to speed up in the original problem area and erode the bank further down
stream creating a new problem.
At the Nashwaak Village field site five different layers of sediment exist; they
including overburden, fine sand, pebble, orange-brown clay, and light grey clay. The
clay layers were focused on in this project because they are located where the
majority of erosion occurs. Experiments indicated that these layers could experience
erosion rates as high as 350 mm/day, although that was uncommon. A combination
of riprap, vegetation, and boulder clusters are recommended to minimize erosion and
costs and to maximize the environmental benefits of river bank protection.