T.Y. Dong Geomorphology Lab

Lower Rio Grande Valley, South Texas

The Lower Rio Grande Valley is under-researched, despite its importance in understanding sediment transport, water quality, and geomorphic processes. Our research focuses on filling these gaps, including the study of river avulsions, sediment accumulation, and human impacts on the region’s water and channel morphology.

Ongoing Research Topics

  • Reconstruction of the Holocene Rio Grande Delta Avulsions using a relative age model of the abandoned channel belts.
  • Long-term Sedimentation Accumulation Rate of Alluvial Basins (Esteros)
  • Morphology and evolution of the Isabel Delta, Bahia Grande, Texas
  • Assessing Water and Sediment Transport in Alluvial Basins between the abandoned Rio Grande channels (Resacas)
  • Impacts of Human Activities on Water and Sediment Discharge and Channel Morphology of the Coastal Rio Grande During the Anthropocene
  • Geomorphic changes in the Lower Rio Grande River Valley

Poster Presentations

Alvarez, C., Dong, T. Y., Casillas Rodriguez, A. Y., & Gonzalez, J. L. (2024). Spatial Distribution and Planform Characteristics of Clay Dunes (Lomas) in the Rio Grande Delta Across Texas, USA, and Tamaulipas, Mexico. Presented at the Geological Society of America Annual Meeting, Anaheim, CA, November 2024.

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