TEN WAYS TO BE RIGHT: UNDERSTANDING STAN SCHUMM'S INFLUENCE ON RIVER MANAGEMENT

Stanley Schumm’s genius as a geomorphologist was to imagine elegant conceptual models, test them with data, and then apply them relentlessly to an astonishing array of situations. His contribution was as much about his approach as about his conclusions. In this presentation I will follow some of Schumm’s key ideas through time and space, from their genesis to their effect. An example is the morphological response to sediment load revealed by Australian palaeochannels, which led variously to improved management of eroding streams, and to explanations of Eocene sedimentary geology. Another is the notion of thresholds between multiple morphological states for streams, combined with time lags in fluvial response. These combined ideas helped to explain the morphology of large rivers, responses to base-level change, and the evolution of valley-floor incised streams. Certainly in Australia, these ideas empowered a new generation of geomorphologists to begin working with engineers to manage rivers in a new way. By tracking Schumm's ideas through the literature we can discern their impact, but by understanding how he thought we can continue his work.