River sediment and flow characteristics near a bank filtration water supply: Implications for riverbed clogging

SummaryRiverbed clogging is an important issue related to the sustainable exploitation of riverbank filtration well fields. In this research, several complementary field techniques are employed to assess the current state and possible evolution of riverbed clogging at a site in the Saint John River, New Brunswick. The study is conducted in regions of the riverbed that have previously been identified as allowing recharge to the semi-confined aquifer that has been used since 1955 to supply water to the City of Fredericton. Flow velocity measurements, video imaging, and suspended sediment and bed sediment analyses conducted during the low flow (summer) period indicate that part of the recharge area closest to the well field, about 20% of the total area, is affected by bed armoring with cobbles and boulders. Consistent with previous studies, with increasing distance from the riverbank the sediment size decreases and the armor layer disappears. Previous research indicates that turbulent impacting of fine particles into the voids between the cobbles and boulders of the armor layer may reduce infiltration by up to 95%; however, the suspended sediment load in the river is mainly composed of organic matter, and the measured concentrations of suspended sediment (up to 3 mg/L) are not considered high enough to create such large reductions in infiltration. Additionally, the mineral fraction of the suspended sediment would not be expected to settle under the calculated average shear velocity of 0.012 m/s. Other sources of particulate matter, such as the degradation of aquatic vegetation on the riverbed, may be more significant with respect to riverbed clogging; however, annual peak flows may also create bed shear stresses that serve to limit long-term clogging effects.