A 400-year discharge record of Lower Rhine floods, based on the sedimentary characteristics of flood deposits

Abstract

Many abandoned channels and dike-breach scour holes characterize the floodplains at the apex of the Rhine Delta (Germany and the Netherlands). This study demonstrates the suitability of sedimentary records for (palaeo)flood characterization. Based on a network of sites, it is possible to provide an accurate (internally cross-validated) flood chronology for the Lower Rhine and delta, and to reconstruct regional differences in the impact of floods (e.g., by ice jams or local dike breaches). Moreover, given the preservation of filled oxbows from all periods along the Lower Rhine, it is possible to extend flood chronologies and magnitude estimations back to the Early Holocene using sedimentary data.