LandStudies believes that “Legacy Sediments” are responsible for much of the sediment and nutrient pollution that threatens the health of waterways in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic region, including the Chesapeake Bay. Learn more about Legacy Sediments by reading 'Legacy Sediments: A Brief History', a collaborative narrative by LandStudies and our colleagues at Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, Pa., Drs. Dorothy Merritts and Robert Walter.

We also believe that many of the water quality and flooding problems we experience in this part of the country can be addressed through floodplain restoration. LandStudies’ Approach to Stream Corridor and Floodplain Restoration summarizes the many benefits available through this technique.

If you want to know more about Legacy Sediments and related issues, you may want to read some of the research papers posted here. Studies by LandStudies, Franklin and Marshall College, the U.S. Geological Service, and others examine floodplain soils, river mechanics, stream stability, floodplain functions, erosion rates, sediment transport, and floodplain infiltration rates.

You may also want to view photos of some of LandStudies floodplain restoration projects.

THE STUDIES
“Back to the Future”: Stream Corridor Restoration and Some New Uses for Old Floodplains
(LandStudies 2004)

Santo Domingo Creek Sediment & Nutrient Load Study, Lititz Borough, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (LandStudies 2004) *

An Evaluation of the Pollution Reduction Benefits of the Santo Domingo Floodplain Restoration Project in Lancaster County (Penn State 2004)

LandStudies’ Reply to An Evaluation of the Pollution Reduction Benefits of the Santo Domingo Floodplain Restoration Project in Lancaster County (LandStudies 2005)

Sediment and Soil Site Investigation (Franklin and Marshall College 2004) *

Palynological Analysis of Five Samples from Big Spring Trench Three (Franklin and Marshall College 2004)

Colonial Mill Ponds of Lancaster County Pennsylvania as a Major Source of Sediment Pollution to the Susquehanna River and Chesapeake Bay (Franklin and Marshall College 2004)

Summary of Suspended-Sediment Data for Streams Draining the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, Water Years 1952-2002 (United States Geological Survey 2004)

Agricultural BMPs, Nutrient Load Reductions, and Watershed Restoration – the Octoraro Creek Watershed and the Chesapeake Bay (John R. Shuman 2005)

Stream Bank Erosion as a Source of Pollution: Research Report (LandStudies 2005)


We will continue to update our findings. If you have questions or comments for further discussion or data from your own observations you want to share on this site, please feel free to contact us.

* Please Note that these documents are rather large and will take some time too download!