Abstract. Many deltas are threatened by accelerated soil subsidence,
sea-level rise, increasing river discharge, and sediment starvation.
Effective delta restoration and effective river management require a thorough
understanding of the mechanisms of sediment deposition, erosion, and their
controls. Sediment dynamics has been studied at floodplains and marshes, but
little is known about the sediment dynamics and budget of newly created
wetlands. Here we take advantage of a recently opened tidal freshwater system
to study both the mechanisms and controls of sediment deposition and erosion
in newly created wetlands. We quantified both the magnitude and spatial
patterns of sedimentation and erosion in a former polder area in which water
and sediment have been reintroduced since 2008. Based on terrestrial and
bathymetric elevation data, supplemented with field observations of the
location and height of cut banks and the thickness of the newly deposited
layer of sediment, we determined the sediment budget of the study area for
the period 2008–2015. Deposition primarily took place in channels in the
central part of the former polder area, whereas channels near the inlet and
outlet of the area experienced considerable erosion. In the intertidal area,
sand deposition especially takes place at low-lying locations close to the
channels. Mud deposition typically occurs further away from the channels, but
sediment is in general uniformly distributed over the intertidal area, due to
the presence of topographic irregularities and micro-topographic flow paths.
Marsh erosion does not significantly contribute to the total sediment budget,
because wind wave formation is limited by the length of the fetch.
Consecutive measurements of channel bathymetry show a decrease in erosion and
deposition rates over time, but the overall results of this study indicate
that the area functions as a sediment trap. The total contemporary sediment
budget of the study area amounts to 35.7×103 m3 year−1, which corresponds to a net
area-averaged deposition rate of 6.1 mm year−1. This is
enough to compensate for the actual rates of sea-level rise and soil
subsidence in the Netherlands.