Relating accretion and erosion at an exposed tidal wetland to the bottom shear stress of combined current–wave action

Sediment dynamics have an important influence on the morphological evolution of tidal wetlands, which consist of mudflats and salt marshes. To understand the nature of sediment behavior under combined current–wave action at an exposed tidal wetland, we measured the waves, currents, water depths, bed-level changes, and sediment properties at a mudflat–salt marsh transition on the Yangtze Delta, China, during five consecutive tides under onshore winds of ~ 8 m/s, and calculated the bed shear stresses due to currents (τc), waves (τw), combined current–wave action (τcw), and the critical shear stress for erosion of the bottom sediment (τce). The bed shear stresses under combined current–wave action (τcw) were approximately five times higher on the mudflat (up to 1.11 N/m2; average 0.27 N/m2) than on the salt marsh (up to 0.14 N/m2; average, 0.06 N/m2). On the mudflat, τcw was larger than the critical erosion shear stress (τce = 0.103 N/m2) for 70% of the period of submergence, whereas τcw was always lower than τce at the salt marsh site (τce = 0.116 N/m2). This result indicates that the sediment dynamics on the mudflat were dominated by erosion, whereas at the salt marsh they were governed by deposition, which is in agreement with the observed bed-level change during the study period (− 3.3 mm/tide on the mudflat and 3.0 mm/tide on the salt marsh). A comparison of τcw values calculated using the van Rijn, 1993 and Soulsby, 1995 models for bed shear stresses under combined current–wave action indicates that both models are applicable to the present case and effectively predict the bottom shear stress under combined current–wave action. Overall, we conclude that τcw in combination with τce is useful in assessing the hydrodynamic mechanisms that underlie the morphological evolution of exposed tidal wetlands.

► We use three shear stresses to predict bed-level changes in an exposed tidal wetland.
► The predicted bed-level changes are in agreement with in situ measurements.
► Bed shear stress due to current–wave action is key to tidal flat sediment dynamics.
► The models of van Rijn, 1993 and Soulsby, 1995 for bed shear stress are applicable.