Sediment characteristics of Tennessee streams and reservoirs

Measured suspended-sediment data and reservoir sedimentation data have been analyzed to determine sediment yields and transport characteristics of Tennessee streams. Measured suspended-sediment is mostly silt and clay size material even in the sand-bed channels of western Tennessee. Unmeasured load accounts for less than 10 percent of the total sediment load in western Tennessee. Unmeasured load in middle and eastern Tennessee streams is believed to be only a small percentage of total load because bed material is generally coarse and quite variable. Sediment of total load because bed material is generally coarse and quite variable. Sediment yields for middle and eastern Tennessee basins generally are less than 800 tons per square mile per year ((tons/mi2)/yr), however, highly disturbed basins can have yields from 1,000 to 3,000 (tons/mi2)/yr. Yields for the heavily agricultural and channelized basins of western Tennessee generally range from 700 to 1,000 (tons/mi2)/yr. Yields for the Hatchie River in western Tennessee are less than 200 (tons/mi2)/yr reflecting the lack of floodplain agriculture and channelization. (USGS)