U.S. Geological Survey simulations of 3D-hydrodynamics in Delaware Bay (2016, 2018, 2021) to improve understanding of the mechanisms driving salinity intrusion

The Coupled Ocean-Atmosphere-Wave-Sediment Transport (COAWST Warner and others, 2019; Warner and others, 2010) model was used to simulate three-dimensional hydrodynamics and waves to study salinity intrusion in the Delaware Bay estuary for 2016, 2018, 2021. Salinity intrusion in coastal systems is due in part to extreme events like drought or low-pressure storms and longer-term sea level rise, threatening economic infrastructure and ecological health. Along the eastern seaboard of the United States, approximately 13 million people rely on the water resources of the Delaware River basin, which is actively managed to suppress the salt front (or ~0.52 daily averaged psu line) through river discharge targets. However, river discharge is [...]