Fluvial deposits as a record for Late Quaternary neotectonic activity in the Rhine-Meuse delta, The Netherlands

Abstract

Neotectonic movements have caused differential subsidence in the Lower Rhine Embayment during the Quaternary. The Late Weichselian and Holocene Rhine-Meuse fluvial archive in the central Netherlands was used to quantify neotectonic movements in a setting that was primarily controlled by sea-level rise and climate change. Evidence for neotectonic activity in the central Netherlands is reviewed. Sedimentary evidence shows that fluvial deposits of Late Weichselian and Holocene Rhine and Meuse (Maas) distributaries are vertically displaced along the northern shoulder of the Roer Valley Graben system. Elevation differences in the longitudinal profiles of Late Weichselian terrace deposits were used to quantify tectonic displacements. New results for the southeastern Rhine-Meuse delta (Maaskant area) show that displacements in the top of the Pleniglacial terrace along the Peel Boundary Fault are up to 1.4 m. The maximum displacement between the Peel Horst and the Roer Valley Graben is 2.3 m. This is equivalent to relative tectonic movement rates of 0.09-0.15 mm/yr, averaged over the last 15,000 years.

Climate-driven fluvial development and valley abandonment at the last glacial-interglacial transition (Oude IJssel-Rhine, Germany)

“…This is a remarkable difference with other large Allerød meandering systems in northwestern Europe (e.g. the Meuse valley (Huisink, 1998) and downstream continuations of Rhine and Meuse in the central Netherlands (Cohen et al, 2002), which are found in relative incised position). The Allerød meander belt in the Niers-Rhine course, carrying a minor proportion of the Rhine discharge at the time, as did the Wolfstrang system of the Oude IJssel course, also shows no floodplain incision.…”

“…The Oude IJssel valley has formed as the product of deglaciation in the Saalian (Thomé, 1959;Van de Meene & Zagwijn, 1978;Klostermann, 1992;Busschers et al, 2008). The valley is located in the hinge zone area of the North Sea Basin (Cohen et al, 2002), on a relative stable block on the very northeastern edge of the Roer Valley Graben Rift System (Van Balen et al, 2005), the tectonic structure that hosts the Lower Rhine Embayment (Boenigk & Frechen, 2006). (Central Rhine, Niers-Rhine and Oude IJssel-Rhine) in the apex of the Erkens et al, 2011).…”

“…Starkel, 1983;Vandenberghe et al, 1995;Rose, 1995;Blum & Törnqvist, 2000;Gibbard & Lewin, 2002;Vandenberghe, 2008;Erkens, 2009). The valleys of the Rhine and the Maas in the Lower Rhine Embayment have a long research history on this topic (Pons,1957;Van de Meene, 1977;Verbraeck, 1984;Klostermann, 1992;Schirmer, 1995;Berendsen & Stouthamer, 2001;Cohen et al, 2002;Busschers et al, 2007;Erkens et al, 2011). In this area, a well-preserved terraced morphology exists, with OSL-datable fluvial sequences with aeolian cover and with palaeochannel fills that allow vegetation …”

Architecture of the Holocene Rhine-Meuse delta (the Netherlands) - A result of changing external controls

“…Wallinga (2001) showed that quartz OSL-dating is a useful tool for dating Late Glacial and Holocene Rhine-Meuse deposits. For a detailed description of the principles of OSLdating and its application to fluvial stratigraphy, we refer to Wallinga (2001) (Jelgersma, 1979;Van de Plassche, 1982); b. longitudinal section through the fluvio-deltaic wedge of the Holocene Rhine-Meuse delta with paleo-groundwater gradient lines (after Van Dijk et al, 1991;Cohen et al, 2002); and c. upstream migration of the aggradationincision boundary during the Holocene (after Cohen et al, 2002 . All ages in cal yr BP.…”

3D Geostatistical Interpolation and Geological Interpretation of Paleo–Groundwater Rise in the Holocene Coastal Prism in the Netherlands

“…The combined predictive power of the index-point data set and enveloping surfaces is in combining vertical resolution and lateral coverage. In the coastal prism (and in the paleovalley), paleogroundwater surfaces are generally smooth and only gently sloping, apart from local deformations due to differential subsidence (Cohen et al, 2002). Therefore, the application of groundwaterlevel age-depth relations over large distances is justified.…”