The influence of subsurface architecture on scour hole formation in the Rhine–Meuse delta, the Netherlands

Abstract Scour holes are common features in deltaic rivers which can destabilise embankments through oversteepening of the river bed. Their development has been studied extensively from the hydraulic perspective, but another important control is the erodibility of the river bed which varies considerably due to thickening of heterogeneous deltaic substrate towards the coast. Therefore, we assessed the influence of delta-scale geological heterogeneity and local subsurface architecture on scour hole formation in addition to the hydrodynamic controls. We (1) created an inventory of 165 scour hole locations in the Rhine–Meuse delta, (2) assessed the hydrodynamic conditions at the locations, (3) extracted geometric characteristics and (4) determined the subsurface architecture from geological data. Central and lower delta branches have 0.6–0.7 scours per km while upper delta branches have less than 0.2. Downstream, 58% of scour holes were related to architectural elements, notably sand bodies from former Holocene channel belts and Early Holocene cohesive beds. These scours have steeper slopes due to higher proportions of cohesive sediments near the river bed. Furthermore, scours related to channel belt sand bodies are limited in downstream length and depth, up to maximum of approximately two times the water depth. From our results, we provide a delta-scale explanatory framework that relates the position of present-day river channels with respect to Pleistocene river deposits and Holocene fluvio-deltaic deposits to scour hole formation. Upstream rivers are incised in Pleistocene deposits showing less local variation in erodibility. The majority of scour holes here relate to engineering works. In central and lower delta branches, geologically inherited heterogeneity of the Holocene substrate at critical depths near the channel bottom adds to anthropogenic induced scours and results in high abundances. This demonstrates that downstream variation in subsurface architecture should be considered as a key control on scour locations and characteristics for management purposes.