The morphological development of intertidal mudflats

Objective

Intertidal mudflats fringe many hundreds of kilometres of the coasts of NWEurope. They are important in coast protection and as environments with highwildlife value, but they are vulnerable to sea level and climatic change and toanthropogenic pressures. The processes creating and maintaining the mudflatsare poorly known. The main hypothesis is that mudflat morphology is the result of physical, sedimentary and biological processes with very significantfeedback between them, eg, the biology stabilizing the sediment.INTRMUD aims to investigate the characteristics of mudflats withcontrasting tidal range, phase, wave exposure, sediment physical and biologicalproperties and biological community structure. Existing data from six mudflats be used in a GIS database to establish a classification scheme, and a series ofmodels of mudflat development. Further measurements on these sites using harmonmethods will refine the results, and detailed experiments will quantify the proand their interactions, their ranges and timescales of variation. These measurecover the hydrodynamics, sediment properties and biological processes. Joint exwill be undertaken on a few sites, starting with the Dollard Estuary, Netherlanthere are good facilities and background measurements. These experiments will bdevelop and validate computer models of the processes and feedbacks.The knowledge, classification scheme, data bases and computational moduleswill be available as tools for environmental management.

Fields of science

• natural sciences › computer and information sciences › databases
• natural sciences › earth and related environmental sciences › physical geography › cartography › geographic information systems
• natural sciences › earth and related environmental sciences › atmospheric sciences › climatology › climatic changes

Programme(s)

• FP4-MAST 3 - Specific programme of research and technological development in the field of marine science and technology, 1994-1998

Topic(s)

• 020101 - Coastal processes and morphodynamics

Call for proposal

Data not available

Funding Scheme

CSC - Cost-sharing contracts

Coordinator

University of Plymouth

Address

Drake Circus
PL4 8AA Plymouth
United Kingdom

Participants (14)

CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE

France

Address

Place Du Séminaire
17137 L'houmeau

Cellule de Suivi du Littoral Haut Normand

France

Address

4,rue Du Colonel Fabien
76600 Le Havre

HR WALLINGFORD LTD

United Kingdom

Address

Howbery Park
OX10 8BA Wallingford

Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer (IFREMER)

France

Address

Centre De Nantes
44037 Nantes

Port Autonome du Havre

France

Address

Terre Plein De La Barre
76067 Le Havre

ROYAL NETHERLANDS ACADEMY OF ARTS AND SCIENCE

Netherlands

Address

28,vierstraat 28
4401 EA Yerseke

STICHTING WATERLOOPKUNDIG LABORATORIUM (WL/DELFT HYDRAULICS)

Netherlands

Address

185,rotterdamseweg 185
2600 MH Delft

Sogreah Ingenierie SNC

France

Address

6,rue De La Lorraine
38130 Echirolles

UNIVERSITY OF AARHUS

Denmark

Address

1,nordre Ringgade 1-3
8000 Aarhus C

UNIVERSITY OF COPENHAGEN

Denmark

Address

10,oester Voldgade 10
1350 Koebenhavn K/copenhaegen

UTRECHT UNIVERSITY

Netherlands

Address

5,princetonplein 5
3584 CC Utrecht

Universiteit van Amsterdam

Netherlands

Address

127,nieuwe Achtergracht
1018 WS Amsterdam

University of St Andrews

United Kingdom

Address

Gatty Marine Laboratory
St Andrews

University of Wales, Cardiff

United Kingdom

Address

CF1 3YE Cardiff