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  • Waterfall - sudden drop on river course 
    • Soft rock gets eroded quicker than hard rock creating a step
    • Hard rock forms an overhang
    • Abrasion and hydraulic action cause a plunge pool
    • An increase in size causes the overhang to collapse, leaving a waterfall
  • Meanders 
    • Rivers flow round a bend and the water pushes on the outside
    • Lateral erosion on the bend causes a river cliff
    • Water on the inside is slower so deposits material
    • Causes bends in the river
  • Oxbow Lake
    • Erosion makes a narrow neck
    • During floods, the river takes the shortest course, through the neck
    • Creates a new straighter river course
    • Leaves a cut off section = oxbow lake
  • Levees - in the lower course 
    • Sediment in the water gets deposited into the flood plains when there's a flood
    • Builds up over time
  • Hard Engineering
    • Dams - traps water which then builds up (expensive but can produce electricity)
    • River Straightening - speeds the flow of water (flood risk but higher volume of water can be held)
  • Soft Engineering
    • Flood Warnings and Preparation

River Landforms

Emily Pine
Module by Emily Pine, updated more than 1 year ago
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