Quantifying the long-term effects of human interventions on estuarine sediment concentrations

Many estuaries worldwide have been modified in recent decades and centuries, for example through land reclamation or to allow ever larger ships to access inland waterways. These human interventions often lead to higher suspended sediment concentrations (SSC), which reduce visibility and lead to a decline in primary production at the base of the ecological food chain. One estuary affected in this way is the Ems Estuary on the Dutch-German border. Deltares has quantified historical changes in SSC associated with human interventions and advised on mitigating measures.