Physical Impacts of Sand Mining in Rivers and Floodplains

Sand is utilized in a wide range of construction and manufacturing industries. Rapid global population growth has fostered a continuous increasing demand for sand, and current rate of sand removal from alluvial environments exceeds natural replenishment. As a result, sand mining activities have a negative impact on river morphology and sediment transport. This chapter describes the main morphological (river channel, sediment granulometry) and socio-environmental (aquatic biota, human settlements) changes caused by sand mining on the river systems. A number of management and mitigation strategies are suggested that can avoid or mitigate the impact of sand mining in rivers.