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Marine Sediment Transpórt and Environmental Management
Sedimentary Geology, 21 (1978) 159--160
159
© Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company, Amsterdam -- Printed in The Netherlands
Book R e n e w s
Marine Sediment Transpbrt and Environmental Management. D.J. Stanley and D.J.P. Swift (Editors). Wiley, New York, N.Y., 1976, 602 pp., £24.65 or US$ 42.00. This b o o k describes in four major sections the patterns of water circulation (79 pp.), sediment transport (64 pp.), patterns of sedimentation in space and time (234 pp.), and sedimentation and environmental management (114 pp.) on continental shelves and margins. Foreword, introduction and epilogue b y Shepard, Swift & Stanley, and Menard, respectively, make clear the necessity of a b o o k like this in the light of the extremely rapid expansion of knowledge o f the shelves in the last 30 years and the still scanty knowledge of processes operating on the deeper sea b o t t o m . Shelves form a b o u t one sixth of the total land area of the world and are used for a variety of conflicting purposes, such as the winning of petroleum, minerals and sand, fisheries, waste disposal, deep-water ports, floating airports, recreation, etc. The b o o k has been written for oceanographers, earth scientists, environmental scientists and managers concerned with the problems o f sediment transport in the marine environment, and originated as a course on the continental margin in 1969, and is further an outgrowth of a series o f lectures given in 1974, sponsored by the American Geological Institute. Twenty three specialists contributed to the b o o k and 26 others accepted the role of outside critics and manuscript reviewers. Part I on basic processes was written by Mooers, Leetma, Mofjeld and Madsen. For a geologist/sedimentologist this part is not easy to read. Part II on sediment transport contains contributions of Komar, Drake, Swift & Ludwick, and Middleton & Hampton. Topics discussed are the influence of waves and currents on sediment, suspended sediment transport, and various types of gravity flows. Part III deals with patterns of sedimentation in and on estuaries, lagoons, deltas, beaches, shelves, continental slopes and canyons. Authors of this part are Wanless, Komar, Swift, Southard & Stanley, Kelling & Stanley, and Pierce. Part IV on environmental complications was written by Hatcher & Segar, Saila, Duane, Palmer, and Hard & Palmer. The chemical distribution of pollutants is reviewed, as well as animal--sediment relationships, coastal and ocean engineering, and ocean dumping. At many places in the b o o k the need for further investigation is pleaded for. Present estimates of sand transport in rivers may be in error b y a factor
160
10, although this problem has been studied for more than a century. It is clear that for the far more complicated situation on the sea floor much more study will be needed. Suspended sediment, so important in scavenging pollutants and as food for m a n y marine animals, seems to settle on the shelves for 90%. Study of the actual settling velocity will be needed. It is found that mud is relatively mobile. Currents of 10--30 cm/sec may erode water-logged mud. Such currents have been measured near canyon floors and during hurricanes on the shelf at depths to 70 m. Surface waves may ripple b o t t o m sediment to depths of 125 m and even stir the b o t t o m to depths of 200 m. Also highly urgent is a further study of animal--sediment relationships, because animals produce pellets and stir mud into suspension. Not known is further the existence or influence of such types of water movement as pressinduced currents or internal waves. It appears that only 12 rivers carry one third of the total load transported by all the rivers of the world into the sea and that the Ganges and Yellow rivers alone carry one fifth of the world river load! The influence of the Aswan dam in the Nile on the clay sedimentation in the whole of the eastern Mediterranean is thought provoking. Major conflicting interests are for example mining (mainly oil and gas: 30 billion dollars/year), fisheries (10 billion dollars/year) and annual tax revenues, against the background of the world's need for food and the fact that for obtaining 1 calorie of fish one needs several calories of fossil fuel. It is clear that a book with such a wide scope, is not easy to read due to the complexity of the subject, the present state of knowledge and the great number of contributing specialists. The book is, however, an extremely valuable source of recent literature and may help to guide further research, which will be essential to our welfare. Th.B. ROEP {Amsterdam)
159
© Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company, Amsterdam -- Printed in The Netherlands
Book R e n e w s
Marine Sediment Transpbrt and Environmental Management. D.J. Stanley and D.J.P. Swift (Editors). Wiley, New York, N.Y., 1976, 602 pp., £24.65 or US$ 42.00. This b o o k describes in four major sections the patterns of water circulation (79 pp.), sediment transport (64 pp.), patterns of sedimentation in space and time (234 pp.), and sedimentation and environmental management (114 pp.) on continental shelves and margins. Foreword, introduction and epilogue b y Shepard, Swift & Stanley, and Menard, respectively, make clear the necessity of a b o o k like this in the light of the extremely rapid expansion of knowledge o f the shelves in the last 30 years and the still scanty knowledge of processes operating on the deeper sea b o t t o m . Shelves form a b o u t one sixth of the total land area of the world and are used for a variety of conflicting purposes, such as the winning of petroleum, minerals and sand, fisheries, waste disposal, deep-water ports, floating airports, recreation, etc. The b o o k has been written for oceanographers, earth scientists, environmental scientists and managers concerned with the problems o f sediment transport in the marine environment, and originated as a course on the continental margin in 1969, and is further an outgrowth of a series o f lectures given in 1974, sponsored by the American Geological Institute. Twenty three specialists contributed to the b o o k and 26 others accepted the role of outside critics and manuscript reviewers. Part I on basic processes was written by Mooers, Leetma, Mofjeld and Madsen. For a geologist/sedimentologist this part is not easy to read. Part II on sediment transport contains contributions of Komar, Drake, Swift & Ludwick, and Middleton & Hampton. Topics discussed are the influence of waves and currents on sediment, suspended sediment transport, and various types of gravity flows. Part III deals with patterns of sedimentation in and on estuaries, lagoons, deltas, beaches, shelves, continental slopes and canyons. Authors of this part are Wanless, Komar, Swift, Southard & Stanley, Kelling & Stanley, and Pierce. Part IV on environmental complications was written by Hatcher & Segar, Saila, Duane, Palmer, and Hard & Palmer. The chemical distribution of pollutants is reviewed, as well as animal--sediment relationships, coastal and ocean engineering, and ocean dumping. At many places in the b o o k the need for further investigation is pleaded for. Present estimates of sand transport in rivers may be in error b y a factor
160
10, although this problem has been studied for more than a century. It is clear that for the far more complicated situation on the sea floor much more study will be needed. Suspended sediment, so important in scavenging pollutants and as food for m a n y marine animals, seems to settle on the shelves for 90%. Study of the actual settling velocity will be needed. It is found that mud is relatively mobile. Currents of 10--30 cm/sec may erode water-logged mud. Such currents have been measured near canyon floors and during hurricanes on the shelf at depths to 70 m. Surface waves may ripple b o t t o m sediment to depths of 125 m and even stir the b o t t o m to depths of 200 m. Also highly urgent is a further study of animal--sediment relationships, because animals produce pellets and stir mud into suspension. Not known is further the existence or influence of such types of water movement as pressinduced currents or internal waves. It appears that only 12 rivers carry one third of the total load transported by all the rivers of the world into the sea and that the Ganges and Yellow rivers alone carry one fifth of the world river load! The influence of the Aswan dam in the Nile on the clay sedimentation in the whole of the eastern Mediterranean is thought provoking. Major conflicting interests are for example mining (mainly oil and gas: 30 billion dollars/year), fisheries (10 billion dollars/year) and annual tax revenues, against the background of the world's need for food and the fact that for obtaining 1 calorie of fish one needs several calories of fossil fuel. It is clear that a book with such a wide scope, is not easy to read due to the complexity of the subject, the present state of knowledge and the great number of contributing specialists. The book is, however, an extremely valuable source of recent literature and may help to guide further research, which will be essential to our welfare. Th.B. ROEP {Amsterdam)