Professor Louise Bracken

Contact Professor Louise Bracken (email at deputy.vpresearch@durham.ac.uk)

Biography

My research is focused primarily upon the dynamic and complex relationship within rivers between the processes that generate and supply fine sediment, and those that move the sediment through the river system. In recent years it has become increasingly apparent that fine sediment is a key factor in the environmental quality of a river system, as it plays an important role in determining the nature and rate of transport of nutrients and contaminants. Hence, the understanding of possible sources, pathways and fates of fine sediment is now recognised as an important element of water resource management. Within this framework my research has three broad themes: (1) spatial variations in runoff and sediment transfer, including the pathways that runoff and sediment follow (hydrological connectivity); (2) the supply of sediment from gullies and bank erosion; and (3) practices of undertaking interdisciplinary research to bring together the scientific outputs from the natural sciences with those of social sciences.

1) Spatial variations in runoff and sediment transfer
My research on the spatial variation in runoff and sediment transfer is conducted in both semi-arid and temperate environments. This research, which has involved detailed field monitoring and laboratory analyses, has allowed a new level of quantification of the rates at which sediment enters and moves through the evolving gully system, and has permitted the development of new models to understand the processes through which sediment delivery and transport occur.

2) The supply of sediment from gullies and bank erosion
The supply of sediment from gullies in semi-arid environments is important because many arid areas appear to be entering a new phase of dynamism. My research on this topic has helped in determining and defining the factors that control the generation of gullies, and in determining the response of gullies in terms of morphology and channel-form to environmental perturbations. My research on bank erosion as a sediment source was has helped to quantify the volume of material added by river channel instability.

3) Practices of undertaking interdisciplinary research
This research theme focuses on the development of an interdisciplinary framework for the investigation of earth surface systems. This work is critically important because it utilises a holistic approach that draws upon the skills and practices from different disciplines to produce new levels of understanding of problems facing the global community, most notably the impact of policy and anthropogenic behaviour on environmental processes.

Research Groups

Department of Geography

• Catchments and Rivers
• Hazards and Surface Change

Research Projects

Department of Anthropology

• Rhetoric, Agency, and Farmers’ Knowledge in the Management of Upland Environmental Processes in the UK

Selected Publications

Authored book

• Bull, L.J. & Kirkby, M.J. (2002). Dryland Rivers: Hydrology and Geomorphology of Semi-Arid Channels. Wiley.

Chapter in book

• Huq, M.J. & Bracken, L.J. (2015). From Risk to Opportunity: Climate Change and Flood Policy in Bangladesh. In Handbook of Climate Change Adaptation. Leal Filho, W. Springer. 1023-1047.
• Bracken, L.J. (2013). Flood Generation and Flood Waves. In Treatise on Geomorphology. Shroder, John F. Elsevier/Academic Press. 7: 85-94.
• Bracken, L.J. & Wainwright, J. (2008). Equilibrium in the balance? Implications for landscape evolution from dryland environments. In Landscape Evolution: Denudation, Climate and Tectonics Over Different Time and Space Scales. Gallagher, K., Jones, S.J. & Wainwright, J. London.: Geological Society of London. 296: 29-46.
• Bull, L.J. & Kirkby, M.J. (2002). Channel Heads and Channel Extension. In Dryland rivers; Hydrology and Geomorphology of Semi-Arid Channels. Bull, L.J. & Kirkby, M.J. Wiley. 263-298.
• Bull, L.J. & Kirkby, M.J. (2002). Dryland River Characteristics and Concepts. In Dryland Rivers: Hydrology and Geomorphology of Semi-Arid Channels. Bull, L.J. & Kirkby, M.J. Wiley. 3-16.
• Couperthwaite, JS, Bull, LJ, Lawler, DM & Harris, NM (1996). Downstream change in channel hydraulics and river bank erosion rates in the Upper Severn, UK. In Hydrololgy in the Celtic Countries. Merot, P. & Jigorel, A. 93-100.
• Bull, LJ, Lawler, DM, Leeks, GJL & Marks, S (1995). Downstream changes in suspended sediment fluxes in the River Severn, UK. In Osterkamp, W.R. International Association of Hydrological Sciences. 27-37.

Journal Article

• Ruszczyk, H.A., Rahman, M.F., Bracken, L.J. & Sudha, S. (2021). Contextualizing the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on food security in two small cities in Bangladesh. Environment and Urbanization 33(1): 239-254.
• Rahman, M.S., Donoghue, D.N.M. & Bracken, L.J. (2021). Is soil organic carbon underestimated in the largest mangrove forest ecosystems? Evidence from the Bangladesh Sundarbans. Catena 200: 105159.
• Cotterill, Sarah & Bracken, Louise J. (2020). Assessing the Effectiveness of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS): Interventions, Impacts and Challenges. Water 12(11): 3160.
• Bracken, Louise J., Cockshut, Ladan, Taylor, Jenny & Cotterill, Sarah (2020). The role of innovation in advancing understanding of hydrological processes. Hydrological Processes 34(23): 4404-4416.
• Yushmah, M.Y.S., Bracken, L., Zuriatunfadzliah, S., Norhaslina, H., Melasutra, M.D., Amirhosein, G., Sumiliana, S. & Shereen Farisha, A.S. (2020). Understanding urban flood vulnerability and resilience: a case study of Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia. Natural Hazards 101(2): 551–571.
• Turnbull, L., Hütt, M., Ioannides,A.A., Kininmonth, S., Poeppl, R., Tockner, K., Bracken, L.J., Keesstra, S., Liu, L., Masselink, R. & Parsons, A.J. (2018). Connectivity and complex systems: learning from a multi-disciplinary perspective. Applied Network Science 3: 11.
• Rollason, E., Bracken, L.J., Hardy, R.J. & Large, A.R.G. (2018). Evaluating the success of public participation in integrated catchment management. Journal of Environmental Management 228: 267-278.
• Rollason, E., Bracken, L.J., Hardy, R.J. & Large, A.R.G. (2018). Rethinking flood risk communication. Natural Hazards 92(3): 1665-1686.
• Smetanová, A., Paton, E., Maynard, C., Tindale, S., Fernández-Getino, A., Marqués Pérez, M. J., Bracken, L., Le Bissonnais, Y. & Keesstra, S. (2018). Stakeholders’ Perception of the Relevance of Water and Sediment Connectivity in Water and Land Management. Land Degradation and Development 29(6): 1833-1844.
• Rollason E., Bracken, LJ., Hardy R.J & Large A.R.G. (2018). The importance of volunteered geographic information for the validation of flood inundation models. Journal of Hydrology 562: 267-280.
• Cook, Brian, Forrester, John, Bracken, Louise, Spray, Christopher & Oughton, Elizabeth (2016). Competing Paradigms of Flood Management in the Scottish/English Borderlands. Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal 25(3): 314-328.
• Bracken, L.J., Oughton, E.A., Donaldson, A., Cook, B., Forrester, J., Spray, C., Cinderby, S., Passmore, D. & Bisset, N. (2016). Flood risk management, an approach to managing cross-border hazards. Natural Hazards 82(Supplement 2): 217-240.
• Forrester, J., Cook, B.R., Bracken, L.J., Cinderby, S. & Donaldson, A. (2015). Combining participatory mapping with Q-methodology to map stakeholder perceptions of complex environmental problems. Applied Geography 56: 199-208.
• Parsons, A.J., Bracken, L.J., Poeppl, R.E., Wainwright, J. & Keesstra, S.D. (2015). Introduction to special issue on connectivity in water and sediment dynamics. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 40(9): 1275-1277.
• Bracken, L.J., Turnbull, L., Wainwright, J. & Bogaart, P. (2015). Sediment connectivity: a framework for understanding sediment transfer at multiple scales. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 40(2): 177-188.
• Bracken, L.J., Bulkeley, H.A. & Whitman, G. (2015). Transdisciplinary research: understanding the stakeholder perspective. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management 58(7): 1291-1308.
• Bracken, L.J. & Oughton, E.A. (2014). How to make sense of our rivers: using assemblage to understand angling. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Water 1(3): 315-322.
• Bracken, L.J, Bulkeley, H.A & Maynard, C. (2014). Micro-hydro power in the UK: The role of communities in an emerging energy resource. Energy Policy 68: 92-101.
• Bracken, L.J., Wainwright, J., Ali, G.A., Tetzlaff, D., Smith, M.W., Reaney, S.M. & Roy, A.G. (2013). Concepts of hydrological connectivity: Research approaches, pathways and future agendas. Earth-Science Reviews 119: 17-34.
• Bracken, L.J. & Oughton, E.A. (2013). Making sense of policy implementation: The construction and uses of expertise and evidence in managing freshwater environments. Environmental Science & Policy 30: 10-18.
• Emery, S.B., Perks, M.T. & Bracken, L.J. (2013). Negotiating river restoration: The role of divergent reframing in environmental decision-making. Geoforum 47: 167-177.
• Carrithers, M., Bracken, L.J. & Emery, S. (2011). Can a Species Be a Person? A Trope and Its Entanglements in the Anthropocene Era. Current Anthropology 52(5): 661-685.
• Smith, M.W., Cox, N.J. & Bracken, L.J. (2011). Modeling depth distributions of overland flows. Geomorphology 125(3): 402-413.
• Smith, M.W., Cox, N.J. & Bracken, L.J. (2011). Terrestrial laser scanning soil surfaces: a field methodology to examine soil surface roughness and overland flow hydraulics. Hydrological Processes 25(6): 842-860.
• Bolland, J. D., Bracken, L. J., Martin, R. & Lucas, M. C. (2010). A protocol for stocking hatchery reared freshwater pearl mussel Margaritifera margaritifera. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems 20(6): 695-704.
• Smith, M.W., Bracken, L.J. & Cox, N.J. (2010). Toward a dynamic representation of hydrological connectivity at the hillslope scale in semiarid areas. Water Resources Research 46(12): W12540.
• Raven, E.K., Lane, S.N. & Bracken, L.J. (2010). Understanding sediment transfer and morphological change for managing upland gravel-bed rivers. Progress in Physical Geography 34(1): 23-45.
• Kirkby, M.J. & Bracken, L.J. (2009). Gully processes and gully dynamics. Earth Surface Processes And Landforms 34(14): 1841-1851.
• Bracken, L.J. & Oughton, E.A. (2009). Interdisciplinarity within and beyond geography: introduction to Special Section. Area 41(4): 371-373.
• Oughton, E.A. & Bracken, L.J. (2009). Interdisciplinary research: framing and reframing. Area 41(4): 385-394.
• Raven, E.K., Lane, S.N., Ferguson, R.I. & Bracken, L.J. (2009). The spatial and temporal patterns of aggradation in a temperate, upland, gravel-bed river. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 34(9): 1181-1197.
• Wishart, D., Warburton, J. & Bracken, L. (2008). Gravel extraction and planform change in a wandering gravel-bed river: The River Wear, Northern England. Geomorphology 94: 131-152.
• Bracken, L.J. (nee Bull), Cox, N.J. & Shannon, J. (2008). The relationship between rainfall inputs and flood generation in south-east Spain. Hydrological Processes 22(5): 683-696.
• Smith, M.W., Cox, N.J. & Bracken, L.J. (2007). Applying flow resistance equations to overland flows. Progress in Physical Geography 31(4): 363-387.
• Bracken, L.J. & Croke, J. (2007). The concept of hydrological connectivity and its contribution to understanding runoff-dominated geomorphic systems. Hydrological Processes 21(13): 1749-1763.
• Reaney, S.M., Bracken, L.J. & Kirkby, M.J. (2007). Use of the connectivity of runoff model (CRUM) to investigate the influence of storm characteristics on runoff generation and connectivity in semi-arid areas. Hydrological Processes 21(7): 894-906.
• Bracken, L.J. & Oughton, E.A. (2006). 'What do you mean?' The importance of language in developing interdisciplinary research. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers 31(3): 371-382.
• Bracken, L.J. & Wainwright, J. (2006). Geomorphological equilibrium: myth and metaphor?. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers 31(2): 167-178.
• Bracken, L.J. & Kirkby, M.J. (2005). Differences in hillslope runoff and sediment transport rates within two semi-arid catchments in southeast Spain. Geomorphology 68(3-4): 183-200.
• Kirkby, M.J. & Bracken, L.J. (2005). Modelling Hillslope Connectivity and Channel interactions in Semi-arid Areas: Implications for Hillslope Restoration Following Land Abandonment. International Association of Hydrological Processes 299: 3-15.
• Kirkby, M.J., Bracken, L.J. & Shannon, J. (2005). The influence of rainfall distribution and morphological factors on runoff delivery from dryland catchments in SE Spain. Catena 62: 136-156.
• Bracken, L.J. & Mawdsley, E. (2004). 'Muddy glee': rounding out the picture of women and physical geography fieldwork. Area 36(3): 280-286.
• Kirkby, M.J., Bull, L.J., Poesen, J. & Vandekerckhove, L. (2003). Observed and modelled distributions of channel and gully heads - with examples from SE Spain and Belgium. Catena 50(2-4): 415-434.
• Bull, L.J., Kirkby, M.J., Shannon, J. & Dunsford, H. (2003). Predicting Hydrological Similar Surfaces (HYSS) in semi-arid environments. Advances in Environmental Monitoring and Modelling 1(2): 1-26.
• Kirkby, M.J. & Bull, L.J. (2003). Thresholds of gully initiation: a comparison of field data and model predictions. Catena Special Issue 50(2-4): 415-434.
• Kirkby, M.J., Bracken, L.J. & Reaney, S. (2002). The influence of land use, soils and topography on the delivery of hillslope runoff to channels in SE Spain. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 27(13): 1459-1473.
• Kirkby, MJ & Bull, LJ (2000). Some factors controlling gully growth in fine-grained sediments: a model applied in southeast Spain. Catena 40(2): 127-146.
• Bull, LJ, Kirkby, MJ, Shannon, J & Hooke, JM (2000). The impact of rainstorms on floods in ephemeral channels in southeast Spain. Catena 38(3): 191-209.
• Bull, LJ & Kirkby, MJ (1997). Gully processes and modelling. Progress In Physical Geography 21(3): 354-374.
• Bull, LJ (1997). Magnitude and variation in the contribution of bank erosion to the suspended sediment load of the River Severn, UK. Earth Surface Processes And Landforms 22(12): 1109-1123.
• Bull, LJ (1997). Relative velocities of discharge and sediment waves for the River Severn, UK. Hydrological Sciences Journal-journal Des Sciences Hydrologiques 42(5): 649-660.

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Supervises

• Mr Mohd Muzzammil
• Mrs Clair Cooper
• Mr Md. Saidur Rahman
• Mr Ryan Wyeth
• Miss Eleftheria Vavadaki
• Ms Julia Costescu
• Ms. Shababa Haque

Selected Grants