Articles | Volume 11, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-287-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-287-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Pristine levels of suspended sediment in large German river channels during the Anthropocene?
Thomas O. Hoffmann
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Bundesanstalt für Gewässerkunde, 56068 Koblenz, Germany
Yannik Baulig
Bundesanstalt für Gewässerkunde, 56068 Koblenz, Germany
Stefan Vollmer
Bundesanstalt für Gewässerkunde, 56068 Koblenz, Germany
Jan H. Blöthe
Institute of Environmental Social Sciences and Geography, University of Freiburg, Schreiberstraße 20, 79098 Freiburg, Germany
Karl Auerswald
Aquatic Systems Biology Unit, Technical University of Munich,
Mühlenweg 22, 85354 Freising, Germany
Peter Fiener
Institute of Geography, University Augsburg, Alter Postweg 118, 86165 Augsburg, Germany
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Cited
13 citations as recorded by crossref.
- A critical view on determination of annual microplastic loads in the Rhine River D. Range et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2025.123835
- Cross-Sectional Variability of Suspended Sediment Concentration in the Rhine River C. Nicholls & T. Hoffmann https://doi.org/10.3390/w17233391
- Sediment fingerprint tracing: unravelling provenance of freshly deposited sediment in the Rhine River M. van der Perk et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-026-04468-6
- Spatiotemporal denudation rates of the Swabian Alb escarpment (southwestern Germany) dominated by anthropogenic impact, lithology, and base-level lowering M. Schaller et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-13-571-2025
- Monitoring suspended sediment longitudinal fluctuations along the Pearl River B. Cao et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2025.109648
- Feasibility of Conditional Tabular Generative Adversarial Networks for Ecologically Plausible Synthetic River Water-Quality Data: A Statistical and Ecological Similarity Assessment O. Ibram et al. https://doi.org/10.3390/w18020214
- Spatio-Temporal Changes in Erosion-Accumulation Processes on a Small Watershed in the Northern Part of the Central Russian Upland V. Golosov et al. https://doi.org/10.31857/S0032180X24050076
- Assessing the impacts of regulation works on an Upper Rhine reach for developing a process-based restoration framework V. Chardon et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2025.109731
- Spatiotemporal Changes in the Erosion and Deposition Processes in a Small Catchment in the North of the Central Russian Upland V. Golosov et al. https://doi.org/10.1134/S1064229323603682
- The great decline of suspended sediment load in the Po River (Italy) over the last 100 years A. Brenna et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2026.109864
- The effects of changing channel retention: Unravelling the mechanisms behind the spatial and temporal trends of suspended sediment in the Rhine basin J. Cox et al. https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.5929
- Occurrence, Temporal Variability, and Loads of Poly(vinyl chloride) in the Rhine and Moselle J. Kamp et al. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.5c03236
- Hydro-geomorphic perspectives on microplastic distribution in freshwater river systems: A critical review D. Range et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2023.120567
13 citations as recorded by crossref.
- A critical view on determination of annual microplastic loads in the Rhine River D. Range et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2025.123835
- Cross-Sectional Variability of Suspended Sediment Concentration in the Rhine River C. Nicholls & T. Hoffmann https://doi.org/10.3390/w17233391
- Sediment fingerprint tracing: unravelling provenance of freshly deposited sediment in the Rhine River M. van der Perk et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-026-04468-6
- Spatiotemporal denudation rates of the Swabian Alb escarpment (southwestern Germany) dominated by anthropogenic impact, lithology, and base-level lowering M. Schaller et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-13-571-2025
- Monitoring suspended sediment longitudinal fluctuations along the Pearl River B. Cao et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2025.109648
- Feasibility of Conditional Tabular Generative Adversarial Networks for Ecologically Plausible Synthetic River Water-Quality Data: A Statistical and Ecological Similarity Assessment O. Ibram et al. https://doi.org/10.3390/w18020214
- Spatio-Temporal Changes in Erosion-Accumulation Processes on a Small Watershed in the Northern Part of the Central Russian Upland V. Golosov et al. https://doi.org/10.31857/S0032180X24050076
- Assessing the impacts of regulation works on an Upper Rhine reach for developing a process-based restoration framework V. Chardon et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2025.109731
- Spatiotemporal Changes in the Erosion and Deposition Processes in a Small Catchment in the North of the Central Russian Upland V. Golosov et al. https://doi.org/10.1134/S1064229323603682
- The great decline of suspended sediment load in the Po River (Italy) over the last 100 years A. Brenna et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2026.109864
- The effects of changing channel retention: Unravelling the mechanisms behind the spatial and temporal trends of suspended sediment in the Rhine basin J. Cox et al. https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.5929
- Occurrence, Temporal Variability, and Loads of Poly(vinyl chloride) in the Rhine and Moselle J. Kamp et al. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.5c03236
- Hydro-geomorphic perspectives on microplastic distribution in freshwater river systems: A critical review D. Range et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2023.120567
Saved (final revised paper)
Latest update: 03 Nov 2026
Short summary
We analyzed more than 440 000 measurements from suspended sediment monitoring to show that suspended sediment concentration (SSC) in large rivers in Germany strongly declined by 50 % between 1990 and 2010. We argue that SSC is approaching the natural base level that was reached during the mid-Holocene. There is no simple explanation for this decline, but increased sediment retention in upstream headwaters is presumably the major reason for declining SSC in the large river channels studied.
We analyzed more than 440 000 measurements from suspended sediment monitoring to show that...
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