QUANTIFYING MORPHOLOGIC CHANGES IN LOW GRADIENT RIVERS CROSSING THE BATON ROUGE FAULT ZONE
We hypothesize that faulting will be evident in patterns of river sinuosity, slope, and channel width. Our study is currently focused on the Tickfaw River near Holden, Louisiana, which for this region is representative of a relatively undisturbed low-order river. We are conducting field surveys using a pioneering Differential GPS method, as well as GIS analysis of the LA LiDAR data and flow modeling using the HEC-RAS software program. Historic channel features are being explored through aerial photography dating back to 1954. Preliminary results show relatively low sinuosity values in the region of the river crossing the northern portion of the fault zone contrasting with relatively high sinuosity values in the region of the river crossing southern portion of the fault zone. Our goal is to use geomorphic indicators to identify areas of the fault that are currently active, in order to identify regions that are vulnerable to subsidence.