An inexpensive instrument for sediment erosion-accumulation rate measurement in intertidal environments

Abstract

A low-cost instrument to determine elevation changes in intertidal environments is presented. The instrument consists of two small PVC pipes driven into the soil and a ruler attached to a bar sustained by two rods that are inserted into the pipes during the measurement. This method cost only a fraction of similar ones described in the literature. Furthermore, because large numbers can be deployed in an area, statistically significant sedimentation- erosion rates can be obtained for places where spatial variances are very large.