Analysis of the Change in Water Elevation and Oscillatory Behavior in Buffalo River, Buffalo, New York

Abstract:

The Buffalo River, an urbanized watershed, discharges into the east end of Lake Erie. The river is classified as a Great Lakes Area of Concern due to loss of habitat, poor water quality, and contaminated bottom sediments. Much attention is being paid to restoring the river with the goal to address the environmental impairments and de-list the river. In support of this effort, an environmental dredging project took place between the years 2011 and 2015 removing ~1 million cubic yards of sediment. The prevailing westerly winds pile water up at the Buffalo end of the Lake Erie causing large setups (elevation changes) creating surges into the Buffalo River reversing flow. To understand how a lake surge propagates into the Buffalo River, water level recorders were installed at the mouth (0 km), mid-river (4.5 km), and up-river (9 km) for five to six months each year between 2011 and 2018. River elevations were measured at 5-minute intervals from 2011 to 2012 and at 1-minute intervals from 2013 to 2018.

Using time series analysis involving multiple visual techniques such as correlation plots, autocorrelation, partial autocorrelation plots,and possibly employing analytical techniques such as spectral investigation using wavelet analysis, ongoing work is directed towards characterizing episodes when there are rapid, short-term increases in river elevation and determining the existence and persistence of low amplitude variations in river elevation that have previously been identified as an oscillation (i.e., river seiche) unique to the Buffalo River. This oscillation appears to have period of ~1.75 - 2.0 hours and amplitudes from <10 cm. Because water level data are available from 2011 to 2018, there is an opportunity to evaluate whether or not changes in the geometry of the river’s channel due to environmental dredging affected changes in water level elevations.