Sediments

Latest news

Handwritten files provide sediment treasure chest

2 October 2018

A NIWA scientist who spent years poring over handwritten scientific notes stored in about 50 large wooden drawers, has seen the fruits of her labour now being used in ways she never imagined.

Upgraded research vessel

12 December 2010

The return of the upgraded RV Tangaroa represents a huge advancement for New Zealand science and exploration

NIWA today welcomed home RV Tangaroa, New Zealand’s only deepwater research vessel, after a $20 million dollar upgrade to enhance its ocean science and survey capabilities.

Our work

Suspended sediment dynamics in New Zealand Rivers: Impacts of catchment characteristics on the timing of sediment delivery during runoff events

Fine sediment is the most pervasive and significant contaminant in New Zealand’s rivers, estuaries, and coastal areas.

Braided river morphodynamics and invasive exotic vegetation

Braided rivers are an arena where woody weeds and floods are in constant competition with each other. Braided rivers naturally flood frequently, repeatedly mobilising their bed sediments and shifting their multiple channels.

Predicting long-term sedimentation and heavy metal accumulation in estuaries

NIWA has developed an Urban Stormwater Contaminant (USC) model to enable urban planners to predict sedimentation and heavy metal accumulation in estuaries and identify problem areas in order to target mitigation measures.

Coastal and oceanic dispersal modelling

Understanding how material released into the ocean spreads is very important in the case of oil spills, sediment transport and the release of invasive species.

Latest videos

Recording underwater biodiversity after earthquakes

NIWA’s marine ecologist Dr Dave Bowden talks about the catastrophic changes to the seafloor in the Kaikoura Canyon following the November 2016 earthquake.

Earthquake's unseen impact

NIWA scientists on board RV Ikatere have been surveying the coastal area around Kaikoura for the first time since November's magnitude 7.8 earthquake in 2016. Their work has revealed significant changes to the sea floor...

Suspended sediment dynamics in New Zealand Rivers: Impacts of catchment characteristics on the timing of sediment delivery during runoff events

Fine sediment is the most pervasive and significant contaminant in New Zealand’s rivers, estuaries, and coastal areas.

Braided river morphodynamics and invasive exotic vegetation

Sediment fingerprinting determines sources of erosion

NIWA scientists have used two sediment ‘fingerprinting’ techniques to identify the contribution of the major sediment sources by erosion processes and land use in an Auckland catchment.

Freshwater Update 80, March 2019

Freshwater Update 80 brings you the latest information from our Freshwater & Estuaries Centre, with articles that cross a broad spectrum of freshwater research. This edition has articles about the sources of plastics in our waterways, the discovery of long-lost lake plant species and a breakthrough in research about freshwater mussels/kākahi.

Slowing the mud invasion

New Zealand's estuaries were once sandy, forest-lined gems.

Reducing sedimentation

According to Dr Andrew Swales, an estuarine physical processes scientist who leads NIWA’s Catchments to Estuaries programme, New Zealand is particularly susceptible to erosion due to the country’s steep lands.

Freshwater Update 79, November 2018

Freshwater Update 79 brings you the latest information from our Freshwater & Estuaries Centre, with articles ranging from NIWA working with NASA; restoring a stream catchment in Kaikōura; looking after urban water; keeping soil and reducing sedimentation; to culling catfish.

Handwritten files provide sediment treasure chest

Media Release

2 October 2018

A NIWA scientist who spent years poring over handwritten scientific notes stored in about 50 large wooden drawers, has seen the fruits of her labour now being used in ways she never imagined.

Using new laser technology to measure bank erosion

Fine sediment is NZ’s most widespread contaminant, degrading ecosystems and impairing recreational, cultural and aesthetic values in our rivers, estuaries, and coastal seas.

Compound Specific Stable Isotope tracing of sediment sources - tools to manage a sticky problem in New Zealand’s freshwaters and estuaries

Fine sediment is New Zealand’s most widespread water contaminant, degrading ecosystems, infilling dams and reservoirs and impairing recreational, cultural and aesthetic values in our rivers, estuaries and coastal seas.

Recording underwater biodiversity after earthquakes

NIWA’s marine ecologist Dr Dave Bowden talks about the catastrophic changes to the seafloor in the Kaikoura Canyon following the November 2016 earthquake.

Earthquake's unseen impact

Voyage reports and data

A list of current voyage reports in downloadable formats.

Water Quality maps, July to September 2012

River Temperatures (JAS)

Winter river water temperatures were mostly in the range 0 to 16^oC

Nutrient spiralling study in the Tukituki River, Hawkes Bay

Intensive land use increases nutrient runoff to rivers, lakes and estuaries with adverse effects on ecosystems. Determining what combinations of land use and management enable the health and services of these ecosystems to be maintained or restored is a major challenge for councils.

The Kaipara: big research for a big place

Fine sediment runoff from deforested and disturbed catchments is recognised by management agencies as being the principal threat to New Zealand's estuarine ecosystems.

Catchment modelling of sediment loads to estuaries

Estuary sedimentation is a continual natural process. Land slope, land use, soil type and rainfall all have significant impacts, and form a complex spatial pattern of sediment generation.

Coastal and oceanic dispersal modelling

Understanding how material released into the ocean spreads is very important in the case of oil spills, sediment transport and the release of invasive species.

Tracking water age in hydrological models

Building a hydrological model

Hydrological models enable us to predict river flows and floods,

Freshwater Update 54, July 2012

Welcome to Freshwater Update 54. This issue features some of the latest work from our Freshwater and Estuaries teams, Water Quality maps and information and River flow maps for Autumn.

Latest news from the centre includes: Float your boat! Scientists use hi-tech miniature Q-boat to measure river flows

Carbon Cycle Diagram

Diagram illustrating a simplified version of the carbon cycle.

Natural Hazards Update 02, February 2012

Welcome to this special edition of Natural Hazards Update, highlighting the Shallow Survey 2012.

Coasts Update 04, January 2012

Welcome to this special edition of Coasts Update, highlighting the Shallow Survey 2012.

Association of Women in the Sciences

28 July 2011 to 29 July 2011

NIWA is sponsoring the Association of Women in the Sciences (AWIS) conference being held in Auckland.

For more information about the conference see AWIS conference website