Nathan Foy

Unit 1A

River Coursework

Aim
Im going to collect my own data. Im going to measure channel features. The
variables of the study were the width and velocity of the river at 3 different sites.

Introduction
The river Im going to investigate will be the River Noe in Derbyshire. It is a
tributary of the River Derwent. It measures approximately 7 1/2 miles long with
the entire length of the river
alongside a railway line. The
river predominately runs
through a valley.
Below, the terrain of the
three sites, the terrain has
been slightly exaggerated.

1
3

Site 1
We drove upstream for
about two miles, where the
water was barely 2 meters wide. It wasnt that
deep either, and as a result it was faster flowing.
There was erosion on both sides, on one side
there was an inward curve of dried rocks this
may contain water when rain falls as there were
puddles present. On the other side the grass had
majorly eroded, leaving a steep hill about 40ft
high, at a greater angle than 45 degrees. Also at
this point the river forked into two going
upwards, obviously because it was near the
source.
Site 2
About 4 miles
observed the
rapids along
mostly due to
example rocks
water was

from the river Noes source, we

river and could confirm areas of
with areas of calmer waters,
the terrain underneath, for
and trees, we suspect. The
about a foot to two deep.

Site 3
From this we went downstream near where it joins
the River Derwent (Which flows into the River Trent
in Derby (and in turn flows into the River Humber
west of Hull)). The river was noticeably wide here,
about 30ft, and about 2-3 ft deep. Erosion was
little, about 2-5ft. The edge was paved. The river
was calm here.
Velocity
Below, site 1, 2 and 3 in order from left to right.

Upper
Cours

Middle
Course

Lowe
r

Generally, the velocity of a river at the upper course should be fast-flowing,

starting to slow down over the middle course, and running slowly at the lower
course.
Width
The width will start narrow and gradually, overall, get wider, although it may
temporarily get thinner in places, such as steep valleys.

Hypothesis
Width of a river
The further the site is from the source, the wider you would expect the river to
be. However it is a tributary and situated in a valley. I would also expect it to be
rather narrow because it is a tributary. A tributary is a river or stream that flows
into a main river, hence the River Noe is not a main River.
The velocity of a river
I expect the velocity of a river to be fast flowing due to the terrain of the Peak
District mountains. This means the river will be in valleys, which at times may be
narrow, leaving the river less space to meander. Therefore, velocity should
increase the further downstream you go.

Method
We made a first visit simply to assess the river and to choose the points to carry
out the investigation. We took photos of the sites to review the suitability, and
the next week we returned to the sites, with suitable clothing, such as

waterproofs and wellingtons to enable us to carry out the investigation properly.

We took a clipboard and camera to record the data and evidence.
Width
We used a tape measure to measure the sites.
Left: Mum and dad measuring
the width of the river. Picture
taken by me, at site 2.

Velocity
We bought same-size oranges to make it a fair test. We measured a 50 ft length
of the river and timed the orange with a
stopwatch on how quickly it went through that
50 ft stretch of river. We carried out the test
three times at all three sites, and recorded the
timings on the clipboard
Problems/Setbacks
A fallen tree branch was obstructing part of
the river at site 2. We removed it; otherwise it
would have corrupted the results. We placed
the branch back in the river afterwards.

Results
Site

Width (ft)

1
2
3

15
26
122

Velocity 1
(m/s)
1.8
1.9
1.7

Velocity 2

Velocity 3

1.35
1.86
1.65

1.5
1.73
1.91

Width of the
river at the
three
different
points. (ft)

Velocity of
the river at
the three
points (m/s)

Overview of site one.

Note in the image the
river width, the
erosion on the corner,
and the small rapid.

Shot of site two. Note in the

image the river width, and the
area of small rapids with calm
patches. Below you can also
see the water depth.

Site three. The river spans

the whole length of the
bridge. Also notice the
reflection showing how calm
it is here.

Conclusion
Width
The data shows that the width gets wider, slowly at first, and then quickly, as the
valley becomes less defined. This shows in the results. This agrees with my initial
hypothesis, that the river would get wider, even though it is a narrow river, in
relation to others.
Velocity
The data disagrees with the hypothesis. The river slows down the further we
went downstream. We were wrong because we didnt anticipate how the river
widened and the steepness almost levelled out.

Evaluation
There are many factors that may have changed the outcome of our data
collection, such as rainfall, and also seasonal reasons, as it was autumn, many
leaves were also in the river, causing a bit of a build up. I found the orange
method effective in measuring velocity; however more accurate apparatus could
have been used, such as a flow meter, to measure the discharge rate. More than
three sites could have been tested to produce more accurate and detailed data.