The department of Estuarine and Delta Systems at the Royal Netherlands Institute of Sea Research (NIOZ) in Yerseke is looking for a highly motivated PhD student with an MSc degree in Physical Geography or Coastal Engineering or Ecology or a related discipline. In this PhD-position you will combine field measurements and manipulative (field) experiments, with statistical data-analyses and Delft-3D modelling, to resolve the following 4 overarching research goals:
1) Interpreting the observed sedimentation and erosional trends (via airborne LIDAR and RTK-dGPS datasets) and deriving an outlook for the longer-term morphological evolution, using hydrodynamic Delft-3D modeling;
2) Understanding the drivers of daily sediment dynamics at tidal flats, with a focus on the role of (storm) events, and the relative importance of events for sediment properties, sediment accretion and ecology;
3) In-depth analyses on the effect of drainage on the rate of soil formation, and the resulting (daily) sediment dynamics, and vice versa;
4) Contextualizing the quality of the developed benthic community, by statistically comparing the community to larger-scale monitoring data from nearby areas, and relating the local community composition to morphological characteristics, (daily) sediment dynamics and drainage patterns.
More information: NIOZ website
Application deadline: 18 April 2025
