Columbia River estuary
Science Center Objects
This research is part of the project “Sediment Transport in Coastal Environments.” We aim to support regional sediment management in the Columbia River littoral cell by:
• monitoring and modeling shoreline change
• modeling fate of disposed dredged material
• bedform morphology
USGS PCMSC is working closely with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Office of Naval Research, Oregon State University, the Washington Department of Ecology, and Deltaes to bring the best available scientific information on sediment management to decision makers.
USGS PCMSC has developed a state-of-the-art process-based numerical model of hydrodynamics and sediment transport for the lower Columbia River, Columbia River Estuary, and adjacent coast, and works closely with partners to develop, calibrate and verify the model.
Because of the expertise developed over the years, USGS is sought by others to perform field work and modeling in the Columbia River littoral cell.
Sediment Transport in Coastal Environments
Our research goals are to provide the scientific information, knowledge, and tools required to ensure that decisions about land and resource use, management practices, and future development in the coastal zone and adjacent watersheds can be evaluated with a complete understanding of the probable effects on coastal ecosystems and communities, and a full assessment of their vulnerability to...
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Date published: September 15, 2021Status: ActiveSediment transport between estuarine habitats in San Francisco Bay
This research is part of the project “Sediment Transport in Coastal Environments”
Contacts: Jessie Lacy -
Date published: September 15, 2021Status: ActiveDrag and sediment transport: conditions at the bottom boundary
Research on bed sediment grain size, bedform morphology, vegetation characteristics, and sediment resuspension and transport is part of the Sediment Transport in Coastal Environments project.
Contacts: Jessie Lacy -
Date published: July 8, 2021Status: ActiveSan Francisco Bay geomorphology
This research is part of the project “Sediment Transport in Coastal Environments”
Contacts: Bruce Jaffe -
Date published: May 15, 2021Status: ActiveSediment transport in submarine canyons
This research is part of the project “Sediment Transport in Coastal Environments”
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Date published: April 9, 2021Status: ActiveColumbia River estuary
This research is part of the project “Sediment Transport in Coastal Environments.” We aim to support regional sediment management in the Columbia River littoral cell by:
• monitoring and modeling shoreline change
• modeling fate of disposed dredged material
• bedform morphologyContacts: Guy GelfenbaumAttribution: Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center -
Date published: March 12, 2021Status: ActiveTransport of invasive microorganisms
This research is part of the project “Sediment Transport in Coastal Environments”
Contacts: Mary McGann -
Date published: July 27, 2020Status: ActiveCoastal watershed and estuary restoration in the Monterey Bay area
This research is part of the project “Sediment Transport in Coastal Environments”
Contacts: Amy EastAttribution: Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
Observations of coastal change and numerical modeling of sediment-transport pathways at the mouth of the Columbia River and its adjacent littoral cell
Bathymetric and topographic surveys performed annually along the coastlines of northern Oregon and southwestern Washington documented changes in beach and nearshore morphology between 2014 and 2019. Volume change analysis revealed measurable localized erosion and deposition throughout the study area, but significant net erosion at the regional...
Stevens, Andrew W.; Elias, Edwin; Pearson, Stuart; Kaminsky, George M.; Ruggiero, Peter R; Weiner, Heather M.; Gelfenbaum, Guy R.
Is “morphodynamic equilibrium” an oxymoron?
Morphodynamic equilibrium is a widely adopted yet elusive concept in the field of geomorphology of coasts, rivers and estuaries. Based on the Exner equation, an expression of mass conservation of sediment, we distinguish three types of equilibrium defined as static and dynamic, of which two different types exist. Other expressions such as...
Zhou, Zeng; Coco, Giovanni; Townend, Ian; Olabarrieta, Maitane; van der Wegen, Mick; Gong, Zheng; D'Alpaos, Andrea; Gao, Shu; Jaffe, Bruce E.; Gelfenbaum, Guy R.; He, Qing; Wang, Yaping; Lanzoni, Stefano; Wang, Zhengbing; Winterwerp, Han; Zhang, Changkuan Morphodynamics of prograding beaches: A synthesis of seasonal- to century-scale observations of the Columbia River littoral cell
Findings from nearly two decades of research focused on the Columbia River littoral cell (CRLC), a set of rapidly prograding coastal barriers and strand-plains in the U.S. Pacific Northwest, are synthesized to investigate the morphodynamics associated with prograding beaches. Due to a large sediment supply from the Columbia River, the CRLC is the...
Ruggiero, Peter; Kaminsky, George; Gelfenbaum, Guy R.; Cohn, Nicholas
Southwest Washington littoral drift restoration—Beach and nearshore morphological monitoring
A morphological monitoring program has documented the placement and initial dispersal of beach nourishment material (280,000 m3) placed between the Mouth of the Columbia River (MCR) North Jetty and North Head, at the southern end of the Long Beach Peninsula in southwestern Washington State. A total of 21 topographic surveys and 8 nearshore...
Stevens, Andrew W.; Gelfenbaum, Guy; Ruggiero, Peter; Kaminsky, George M. Validation of a coupled wave-flow model in a high-energy setting: the mouth of the Columbia River
A monthlong time series of wave, current, salinity, and suspended-sediment measurements was made at five sites on a transect across the Mouth of Columbia River (MCR). These data were used to calibrate and evaluate the performance of a coupled hydrodynamic and wave model for the MCR based on the Delft3D modeling system. The MCR is a dynamic...
Elias, Edwin P.L.; Gelfenbaum, Guy R.; van der Westhuysen, André J.
Heavy-mineral variability in beach and dune sands in the vicinity of the mouth of the Columbia River
Luepke, Gretchen-
Date published: April 9, 2021Hydrodynamic model of the lower Columbia River, Washington and Oregon, 2017-2020
A three-dimensional hydrodynamic model of the lower Columbia River (LCR) was constructed using the Delft3D Flexible Mesh (DFM) modeling suite to simulate water levels, flow, and seabed stresses between January 1, 2017, and April 20, 2020.
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Date published: June 10, 2019Beach topography and nearshore bathymetry of the Columbia River littoral cell, Washington and Oregon
This data release presents beach topography and nearshore bathymetry data from repeated surveys performed by a team of scientists from the USGS, Washington State Department of Ecology, and Oregon State University in the Columbia River littoral cell (CRLC), Washington and Oregon. The CRLC extends approximately 165 kilometers between Point Grenville, WA, and Tillamook, OR.
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Date published: June 30, 2017Oceanographic measurements and hydrodynamic modeling of the mouth of the Columbia River, Oregon and Washington, 2013
experiment to investigate the hydrodynamics of the mouth of the Columbia River (MCR). The field experiment consisted of the collection of continuous oceanographic data at three moorings, shipboard surveys and Lagrangian drifter deployments to characterize spatial variability in hydrodynamics and water properties, and hydrographic surveys to characterize seafloor morphology in the MCR.
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Date published: January 1, 2017Digital seafloor images and sediment grain size from the mouth of the Columbia River, Oregon and Washington, 2014
This dataset includes 2,523 still images extracted from geo-referenced digital video imagery of the seafloor at the mouth of the Columbia River, OR and WA, USA, along with grain size analysis of the surface sediment. Underwater digital video was collected in September 2014 in the mouth of the Columbia River, USA, as part of the U.S. Geological Survey Coastal and Marine Geology Program
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Date published: January 1, 2017Sediment grain size and digital image calibration parameters from the mouth of the Columbia River, Oregon and Washington, 2014
This dataset includes 63 still images extracted from digital video imagery of sediment grab samples, along with laboratory grain size analysis of the sediment grab samples, taken from the mouth of the Columbia River, OR and WA, USA. Digital video was collected in September 2014 in the mouth of the Columbia River, USA, as part of the U.S. Geological Survey Coastal and Marine Geology Pr
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Date published: December 30, 2015Bathymetry and backscatter from 2013 interferometric swath bathymetry systems survey of Columbia River Mouth, Oregon and Washington
High-resolution swath bathymetry and backscatter were collected in the mouth of the Columbia River (MCR) as part of the Office of Naval Research (ONR) funded River and Inlet Dynamics Experiment in 2013. The goal of the U.S. Geological Survey’s component of the research was to evaluate the various hydrodynamic and sediment transport processes in the Columbia River estuary entrance using