Erosion Between Two Delta Fronts, the Mekong Delta Case

Human activities, like embanking, sand mining, groundwater extraction and deforestation lead to strong changes of the deltaic environment. Especially, mangrove cutting influences strongly the coastal erosion along large areas of the southern Mekong delta coast. However, all currently published data document erosion from subaerial areas excluding the subaqueous Mekong delta. Our study fills this gap along the subaqueous Mekong Delta between the Bassac River mouth and the Gulf of Thailand. Hydroacoustic profiles and sediment coring were carried out during two cruises in 2007 and 2008. Analyses of ADCP measurements provide valuable information of current direction and velocity during the inter-monsoon season. Fine sediment dynamics including SPM were analyzed applying laser in situ scattering and Transmissiometry (LISST) at vertical profiles. Two delta fronts were found more than 200 km apart, one in front of the main Mekong river distributaries and the other around Ca Mau Cape, the south-western most spit of the Mekong River Delta. Although the delta front around Ca Mau Cape is not directly supplied by the main distributaries of the Mekong River, it is the fastest prograding region of the subaqueous Mekong delta. Alongshore sediment transport takes place from the north-eastern main distributaries towards south-west (Ca Mau Cape). Between both delta fronts, a large scale alternating sand-ridge-system, at least 120 km long and 6 to 10 km wide (ridge crest distance), has developed where erosional channels separate two sand-ridge bodies. The origin of the sand-ridge system is situated at the delta slope off Ganh Hao around water depths between 10 and 18 m. Here, the delta slope consists mainly of fine sand in the upper layer (up to 20 cm thickness) and is separated by an erosional hiatus from the lower muddy layer. The mangroves and sandy beaches at the coast in this region are also under erosion. It is assumed that the eroded beach sand feeds the sand-ridge-system. The ridges are situated on top of older delta foresets that are incised by the channels between the ridges. We conclude that both wind and tidal driven longshore currents maintain the sand ridges. However, erosion in the channel region is amplified due to increased current velocities. Thereby, the sand-ridge-channel-system serves as sediment conveyor between the two delta fronts. The age of the sand-ridge-channel-system is unknown, but its initiation is referred to the last century in relation to coastal erosion caused by mangrove deforestation and to less sediment supply due to damming and sand mining along the Mekong River.