Characteristics of sediment loads in Ontario streams

This study has involved a literature review and data analysis regarding suspended stream sediments in southern Ontario, highlighting knowledge and identifying gaps with reference to stream loadings, seasonal and areal variability, extreme events, sources of sediments, and sediment and water quality. The quantity of sediment transported in Ontario streams is generally not of major proportion or of major significance. Daily loads follow a distinctive seasonal pattern, the bulk being transported during the spring period; and sediment transport in the province is an event-oriented process, a large percentage of the load moving in a small percentage of time. Extreme events transport a significant portion of the total suspended load, but so also do annual peak events. The bulk of the load emanates from sheet and rill erosion in cropland areas, and areal variability in loads can be related to land use and surface soil conditions. Suspended sediment has been documented to be both a pollutant carrier or source of ...

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