Weathering and Erosion Processes in the Natural Environment

Virendra Bahadur Singh, PhD, is Assistant Professor in the Department of Environmental Studies, Ram Lal Anand College, University of Delhi, India. His research focuses on weathering and erosion processes. Sughosh Madhav, PhD, is Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Civil Engineering, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India. He has published extensively on environmental topics. Naresh Chandra Pant, PhD, is a Senior Professor in the Department of Geology, University of Delhi, India. His research concerns minerology, petrology, weathering, and hydrogeochemistry. Ravi Shekhar, PhD, is Professor in the Centre for the Study of Regional Development, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India. His research concerns environmental geography.

• List of Contributors xviiPreface xxi1 Heavy Metals in the Sediment of River Ganga: A Review 1Anupma Kumari, Mohammed A. Sulaiman, and Mohammad M. Zafar1.1 Introduction 11.2 Source of Heavy Metals 31.3 Effects on Human Health 51.4 Status of Heavy Metal in the Sediment of River Ganga 71.5 Comparative Assessment of Heavy Metal Pollution in Sediment 131.6 Mitigation Strategies 161.7 Conclusion 162 Synergistic Process of Weathering and Erosion: Techniques of Measurement and Their Significance 27Ashutosh Kumar and Pooja Rani2.1 Introduction 272.2 Method of Measuring Rock Surface Change 282.3 Contact Methods 292.4 Noncontact Methods 292.5 Techniques of Measuring Subsurface Changes in Rock 332.6 Techniques Based on Microscope for Measuring Rate of Weathering 372.7 Techniques Based on Infrared Microscopic Techniques 382.8 Techniques Based on Electron Microscopic Techniques 382.9 Techniques Based on Force Microscopy 402.10 Technique Based on 3D X-Ray Microscopy Computed Tomography (CT) 402.11 Conclusion 403 Comparison of Major Hydrogeochemical Processes in Coastal Sedimentary and Hard Rock Aquifers of South India 51Amjad Al-Rashidi, Bedour Alsabti, Thilagavathi Rajendiran, Singaraja Chelladurai, and Chidambaram Sabarathinam3.1 Introduction 513.2 Study Area 533.3 Material and Methods 563.4 Results and Discussion 563.5 Conclusion 774 Textural and Mineralogical Signatures of Fluvial Sediments in Mountain Streams of Contrasting Climates in the Southern Western Ghats (India) 83Jobin Thomas, Sabu Joseph, and Thrivikramji Kythavilakom Pillai4.1 Introduction 834.2 Study Area 854.3 Methodological Framework 884.4 Results and Discussion 884.5 Summary and Conclusion 985 Crucial Interplay of Microbial Communities in Controlling the Geogenic Processes 107Aseem Kerketta, Joystu Dutta, Shristy S. Swarnkar, Amrita K. Panda, and Ashish Kumar5.1 Introduction 1075.2 Mechanical/Physical Weathering 1085.3 Chemical Weathering 1095.4 Biological Weathering 1105.5 Weathering by Plants 1105.6 Weathering by Animals 1115.7 Microbial Weathering 1115.8 Mechanisms of Microbial Weathering 1125.9 Conclusion 1176 Evolution of Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Vulnerability of Western Himalayan Lake Sukhna, India 125Prabhat Semwal, Suhas Damodar Khobragade, and Neeraj Pant6.1 Introduction 1256.2 Study Area 1266.3 Data Used and Methodology 1276.4 Results and Discussion 1316.5 Summary and Conclusions 1417 Geochemical Characterization and Baseline Determination of Trace Elements in Stream Waters from a Part of the Carajás Mineral Province, Brazil 145Gessica da Silva, Leandro S. Quaresma, Prafulla K. Sahoo, Gabriel N. Salomão, and Roberto Dall’Agnol7.1 Introduction 1457.2 Materials and Methods 1477.3 Results 1557.4 Discussion 1767.5 Conclusions 1858 Identifying the Footprints of Meteorological, Tectonic, and Anthropogenic Parameters on Sediment Transport in the Indus River System: A Review 193Prem Kumar, Jaya Rai, and Chandra S. Dubey8.1 Introduction 1938.2 Study Area 1948.3 Geological and Tectonic Settings 1958.4 Hydrologic Regime of the IRB 1988.5 Climate Settings of the IRB 1988.6 Precipitation in the IRB 2008.7 Evaluation of Projections of Hydrometeorological Trends of the IRB 2018.8 Conclusion 2059 An Implication of Enhanced Rock Weathering on the Groundwater Quality: A Case Study from Wardha Valley Coalfields, Central India 215Priyadarshan S. Ganvir and Rajeeva Guhey9.1 Introduction 2159.2 Study Area 2169.3 Geology 2179.4 Methodology 2179.5 Characterization of the Groundwater 2189.6 Spatial Source Approximation 2269.7 Temporal Approximation 2299.8 Conclusion 23410 Soil Loss Rates in Trans-Himalayan Region: Case Study of Shyok Suture Zone, Ladakh, India 243Rohit Kumar, Rahul Devrani, Shailendra Pundir, Ihsan U. Lone, Vikas Adlakha, Kiran Sathunuri, Benidhar Deshmukh, and Anil Kumar10.1 Introduction 24310.2 Study Area 24510.3 Data and Methodology 24710.4 Result and Discussion 25110.5 Conclusion 25511 Microbial Weathering of Rocks in Natural Habitat: Genetic Basis and Omics-Based Exploration 265Mansi Podia, Prerna Yadav, Sunila Hooda, Prerna Diwan, and Rakesh K. Gupta11.1 Introduction 26511.2 Microbial Diversity of Extreme Habitats 26711.3 Factors Affecting Bio-Weathering 27511.4 Genes and Microbial Pathways 27811.5 Microbial Interactions in Bio-Weathering 28211.6 Importance of Bio-Weathering 28411.7 Omics to Explore Microbial Weathering of Rocks 28811.8 Conclusion and Future Directions 28912 Occurrence of Arsenic (As) in the Aquatic Environment Due to Weathering and Erosion 303Shailesh K. Yadav, Alagappan Ramanathan, and Rakesh K. Ranjan12.1 Introduction 30312.2 History and Extent of Arsenic Poisoning in an Aquatic System 30412.3 Chemistry of Arsenic (Inorganic and Organic) 30812.4 Source, Occurrence, and Distribution of Arsenic 31212.5 Geochemistry and Arsenic Mobilization 31412.6 Variation in As with the Groundwater Depth 31912.7 Role of Geomorphology and Geo-stratigraphy in As Mobilization 31912.8 Role of Clay Minerals on As Mobilization 32012.9 Conclusion 32013 Atmospheric CO2 Consumption Associated With Chemical Weathering in the Riverine Ecosystem 331Sushil Kumar13.1 Introduction 33113.2 Weathering and Ecosystem 33213.3 Drivers of Chemical Weathering in the Riverine Ecosystem 33413.4 Human-Induced Drivers of Weathering Agents in the Riverine Environment 33513.5 Atmospheric CO2, Carbonate, and Silicate Weathering 33613.6 Chemical Weathering and Its Factor Affecting 33713.7 Conclusion 33814 Geoscientific Factors Affecting Weathering and Erosion of Surface Exposure and Rock Types 343Vamsi K. Kudapa, Uday Bhan, Nirlipta P. Nayak, Lalit Goswami, Somenath Ganguly, and Susheel Kumar14.1 Introduction 34314.2 Mechanical Weathering 34414.3 Erosion 34714.4 Case Study – A Mighty River, Kali Gandaki in Nepal 35014.5 Erosion Rates Comparison Between Glaciated and Non-Glaciated Basins 35114.6 Conclusion 35415 Impacts of Climate Change on Weathering and Erosion of Rock Types Exposed on Earths Surface 359Nirlipta P. Nayak, Vamsi K. Kudapa, Uday Bhan, Lalit Goswami, Susheel Kumar, and Anamika Kushwaha15.1 Introduction 35915.2 Type of Weathering Mechanism 36415.3 Impact of Climate on Weathering and Erosion 36815.4 Impact of Weathering on Climate 36915.5 Conclusion 369References 370Index 375