CHUTE, THERE IT IS: A REVIEW OF RECENT ADVANCEMENTS IN THE STUDY OF MEANDER BEND CUTOFFS

Meander bend cutoffs result in the complete capture of flow by a new channel pathway across the neck of a bend, resulting in the removal of that bend from the river planform. Cutoffs can develop through progressive migration of the two limbs of a bend to the point of intersection (neck cutoff), by erosion of a chute channel (chute cutoff), or as the result of deposition of a mid-channel bar. A great deal of recent research has focused on cutoff morphodynamics through field, laboratory, and numerical approaches. In this talk, the state of the science on cutoffs will be reviewed, and future research directions will be identified.