Distribution Pattern of Suspended Sediments in Wulan Delta, Demak, Indonesia

Suspended sediments are important factor in a sedimentation process. Oceanographic, hydrodynamic, and meteorological conditions along; benthic habitat, mangroves, and ponds in coastal area, affect sedimentation distribution in Wulan Delta. The purpose of this study wasto estimate the concentration of suspended sediments from 2016 to 2018 and analyze its distribution patterns in Wulan Delta, Wedung District, Demak Regency, Central Java, Indonesia. We used quantitative methods and descriptive analyses to process and analyse data. The oceanographic, hydrodynamic, and meteorological paramaters such as wind, waves, currents, and tides, were used to examine the distribution of suspended sediments, while remote sensing images data were used to estimate the concentration of suspended sediments. The hydrodynamic of Wulan Delta in the west season was more significant than in the east season, with wind velocities ranging from 8.8 to 11.1 m/s and wave height of <1 m. Waves are destructive in the former while constructive in the latter. Current velocities ranging from 0 to 0,25 m/s and mixed tides with prevailing diurnal type. From 2016 to 2018, the concentration of the suspended sediments varied between 60 and 180 mg/l, and their distribution followed the development of Wulan Delta, that is, leftward (southwest-south).