• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.43 no.5
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• pp.455-469
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• 2010

Changes of geomorphology in alluvial river and vegetation recruitment on its floodplain downstream from dams are investigated both qualitatively and quantitatively focusing on the downstream of Andong dam and Imha dam on the Nakdong River. Results of the analyses of river morphology and bed material in the study site show a general trend of riverbed degradation with a max scour of 3 m and bed material coarsening from pre-dam value of 1.5 mm in D50 to post-dam value of 2.5 mm. Decrease in bed shear stress due to the decrease in flood discharge have caused vegetation recruitment on the once-naked sandbars. As result, the ratio of area of vegetated bars over total area of bars has drastically changed from only 7% in 1971 before the Andong dam (constructed in 1976) to 25% after it, and increased to 43% only three year after the Imha dam (constructed in 1992) and eventually to 74% by 2005. Analysis of the vegetation succession at Wicjeol subreach, one of the three subreaches selected in this study for detailed investigation, has clearly shown a succession of vegetation on once-naked sand bars to a pioneering stage, reed and grass stage, willow shrub and eventually to willow tree stages. At the second subreach selected, two large point bars in front of Hahoe Village seem to have maintained their sand surfaces without a signifiant vegetation recruitment until 2005. The sand bars, however, seem to have been invaded by vegetation recently, which warns river managers to have a countermeasure to protect the sand bars from vegetation invasion in order to conserve them for the historical village of Hahoe. On the other hand, recruitment and establishment of vegetation on the sand bars by artificial disturbance of the river, such as damming, can create an unique habitat of backmarsh in the sandy river, as shown in the case of Gudam Wetland, and may increase the biodiversity as compared with relatively monotonous sand bars. Last, the premise in this study that decrease in flood discharge due to upstream dams and decrease in bed shear stress can induce vegetation recruitment on the naked sand bars in the river has been verified with the analyses of the distribution of dimensionless bed shear stress along the selected cross section in each subreach.