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<br /> <br />Andrews and Nelson <br /> <br />the bar will grow to within ",10-15 centimeters of the water surface. In our <br />calculations, deposition on the bar crest ceases when the local boundary shear stress <br />is less than the critical value. In actuality, the mechanics of flow and sediment over <br />the bar crest become very complex when the local depth is less than 10-15 <br />centimeters, and the model does not simulate locally important processes; advection <br />of suspended bed-material and wave-current interactions. Given appropriate flow <br />conditions and bar topography, suspended bed-material, especially the smallest bed <br />particle, can be transported from upstream areas with relatively large boundary <br />shear stress and deposited on the crest of the bar even when the local boundary <br />shear stress is less than critical. <br />As the bar crest approaches the water surface, wind-induced waves on the river <br />become an important factor limiting further growth of the bar. Waves breaking on <br />the bar crest resuspend the bed material, which then can be advected or diffused <br />away from the crest. Especially large waves are generated by interaction with the <br />river current when the wind is blowing upstream. Water waves with amplitudes up <br />to 20 centimeters are rather common in a channel as wide as the Green River <br />i through the Ouray reach. Typically, water waves break when the depth is slightly <br />': greater than the wave amplitude. Therefore, it appears likely that water waves <br />i become a si~ificant factor inhibiting further growth of the bar crest when the local <br />1\ flow depth IS less than roughly 20 centimeters. Furthermore, breaking waves may <br />erode the bar crest as discharge decreases after a peak, especially when the discharge <br />decreases slowly. . <br />Wind erosion also may influence the elevation of the bar crest. Outing a <br />majority of the year, the bar crest is emergent and dry. Aerial photographs taken in <br />late summer and fall show that the bai crest is extensively modified by eolian <br />transport. The annual rate of eolian deflation, however, is unknown. A windstorm <br />with a velocity of 7 m3/s, a rather common occurrence in eastern Utah, would <br />deflate the dry bar surface at a rate of 2-3 em/day. Thus, the total eolian deflation <br />between successive spring floods may be as much as a few tens of centimeters. The <br />l combined erosion of the bar surface by water waves and windstorms is probably on <br />. the order of 0.5 meters per year. The predicted rate of sediment accumulation on <br />the bar crest at a discharge of 475 m3/s is about 15 em per day. Between 1963 and <br />1987, a discharge of 475 m3/s occurred approximately 3 days per year. Therefore, it <br />: is possible that the elevation of the bar crest is maintained approximately constant <br />: over ,a period of years due to deposition from fluvial transport and erosion by water <br />\ waves and windstorms. The si~ificance of bar erosion by water waves and <br />: windstorms deserves further attentIon. <br />i- The downstream migration of channel bars in relatively straight channels with <br />uniform width and cross-sectional area is a commonly observed phenomena. As <br />noted above, channel width and cross-sectional area vary considerably through the <br />Ouray reach, this appears to explain the long-term stability of the location of the <br />bar. Predicted bar evolution at dischar~es of 275 m3/s and 475 m3 Is indicate a <br />slight tendency towards downstream Dllgration. At a discharge of 475 m3 Is, <br />sediment is eroded very slowly from the upstream face o{ the bar and deposited very <br />slowly on the downstream {ace. At discharges less than 275 m3 Is, the zones of both <br />scour and fill shift upstream and, thus, counteract the pattern at larger discharges. <br />When these calculations are repeated using a larger channel width and area in the <br />vicinity of cross sections 18-22, the magnitude of scour and fill over the bar surface <br />at 475 m3/s is greatly enhanced, and the upstream shift in the pattern of scour and <br />fill at relatively small discharges is less pronounced. Therefore, the constriction of <br />channel width and area in the vicinity of cross sections 18-22 probably determines <br />the location of the bar. <br />The constriction of channel width and area in the vicinity o{ cross sections 18-22 <br />also appears to explain the persistence of the secondary channel. As shown in <br />Figure 8, cross sections 16, 18, and 20, the secondary channel scoured rapidly at a <br />discharge o{ 475 m3 Is. Conversely, at discharges less than 275 m37s, model <br /> <br />483 <br /> <br /> <br />