Influence of the back-barrier basin length on the geometry of ebb-tidal deltas

Abstract

The characteristics of ebb-tidal deltas are determined by the local hydrodynamics. The latter depend, among others, on the geometry of the adjacent back-barrier basin. Therefore, interventions in the back-barrier basin can affect the geometry of ebb-tidal deltas. In this study, the effect of the length of the back-barrier basin on the sand volume and spatial symmetry of ebb-tidal deltas is quantified with the use of a numerical model. It is found that the length of the back-barrier basin affects the tidal prism, the amplitude and phase of the primary tide and its overtides, and the residual currents that, together, determine the sand volume of the ebb-tidal delta. In particular, it is found that no unique relationship exists between tidal prism and sand volume of an ebb-tidal delta. The spatial symmetry of ebb-tidal deltas is also found to be affected by the length of the back-barrier basin. This is because the basin length determines the phase difference between alongshore and cross-shore tidal currents. The numerical model results give a possible explanation for the changes that are observed in the geometry of the ebb-tidal deltas that are located seaward of the Texel Inlet and Vlie Inlet after the closure of the Zuiderzee.