Sediment fluxes and rates of sedimentation

Abstract

An understanding of sediment fluxes, both at the local and global scale, involves identifying sites where sediment is produced, the processes involved in liberating this sediment, and processes and rates involved in the transport of the sediment to depositional environments. Sediment production occurs at sites where sedimentary particles form, across sites of temporary storage of these sediment particles, and even at sites of long-term storage, given tectonic movement within geological systems. While terminology remains an important part of compartmentalizing and understanding earth science, consistency in use of terms is not universal. Here we describe a few of the important terms related to sediment fluxes and sedimentation rates.