Observed sediment fluxes in the southwesternmost Okinawa Trough enhanced by episodic events: flood runoff from Taiwan rivers and large earthquakes

The sediment fluxes to the southwesternmost Okinawa Trough (SOT) off northeast Taiwan have been measured with four sets of sediment traps. The sediment fluxes observed were much higher than those in many marginal seas and showed great variations in time and space. The fluxes exhibited a drastic seaward decline from northeastern Taiwan to the central trough and an increase with depth. Temporal variability of fluxes was in a wide range from three times to one order of magnitude for certain traps. The observed sediment fluxes had a positive correlation with river runoff from the Lanyang Hsi, a river in northeastern Taiwan. Usually, the highest fluxes could be attributed to episodic events, for example, typhoon passages, which always cause ample rainfall leading to high runoff and sediment discharge, and sediment fluxes that were observed during typhoon passages accounted for more than 50% of the long-term flux. Large earthquakes are suggested to be responsible for some sediment flux anomalies observed on the nearby steep slope because of a good match in time between sediment collection and earthquake occurrence. A conceptual model is proposed to illustrate the sources and transport of the SOT sediment. The study highlights the greater contribution of Taiwan fluvial sediments to the SOT compared to that of the Changjiang, and it provides evidence demonstrating the combined effects of river runoff and large earthquakes on the sediment fluxes observed in such a deep marginal sea.