Contaminated Rivers: A Geomorphological-Geochemical Approach to Site Assessment and Remediation

By the end of the 1960s, it became acutely apparent that major problems existed with the quality of both surface and subsurface waters on a world-wide scale. In response to these discoveries numerous legislative initiatives were enacted in most developed countries to limit the introduction of contaminants to the environment. It quickly became apparent, however, that not only was there a need to reduce the quantity of contaminants introduced to surface and subsurface waters, but previously contaminated resources had to be remediated to reduce the potential risks on human and ecosystem health. Effective remediation proved to be a difficult task that required an improved understanding of the transport and fate of contaminants in aquatic environments. This fact resulted in a wide range of analyses regarding contaminant transport and cycling in riverine environments during the past several decades. Nonetheless, in comparison to the enormous efforts which have been made to characterize, assess, and remediate contaminated soils and groundwater, contaminated rivers have received relatively little attention. This is in spite of the fact that polluted reaches may cover tens of kilometers of stream channel and the adjacent valley floor. Progress, however, in the soils and groundwater arena has recently produced a shift in emphasis from the subsurface to the surface environment, particularly with regards to cleaning up contaminated rivers. Rivers and their associated drainage basins tend to be geological, hydrological, and geochemically more variable than either soil or groundwater systems.

The geomorphological, surficial and geochemical processes and conditions of rivers require a tailored set of strategies and programs to successfully clean up contaminated river reaches. The primary purpose of this book is not only to provide students and professionals with an introductory understanding of fluvial geomorphic principles but also to explain using a process oriented approach how these geomorphic principles can be integrated with geochemical data to cost-effectively characterize, assess and remediate contaminated river systems. Numerous case studies from North America and many other parts of the world are included.

Audience:
Upper level undergraduate and graduate students in geoscience, engineering, environmental science, geography, geochemistry, toxicology, and soil science studying the means to assess, remediate or restore contaminated streams and rivers. It also serves as a reference book for professionals who are working on contaminated aquatic systems, particularly rivers contaminated by trace metals.

 

"River contamination is a problem of global significance. This book provides a comprehensive and highly readable review of the role of fluvial geomorphic processes in understanding and predicting the dispersal and fate of contaminants in aquatic environments. Aimed at both students and professionals it forms an excellent introductory text to this rapidly developing field, especially in river basins experiencing rapid environmental change."
Mark G. Macklin, University of Aberystwyth, UK

"This excellent book clearly and graphically explains the geochemical and geomorphological principles influencing the contamination of river systems, and cost-effective methods for contaminated river assessment and remediation. I shall certainly be recommending it to all of my students and colleagues."
Karen Hudson-Edwards, Birkbeck, University of London, UK