Floodplains are zones of sediment exchange between the aquatic environment of gravity-driven rivers and the adjacent terrestrial landscape. The style and pattern of sediment exchange that characterizes a river and its floodplain has implications for the provision of ecosystem services. The wide variety of floodplain types we see in South Africa are a product of our region's climatic and geological diversity.

Some river floodplains are characterized by short phases of sediment storage terminated by episodic events of 'floodplain stripping', while finer-grained deposits in other floodplains may lend themselves to the gradual development of channel sinuosity and the storage of sediment for tens of thousands of years.

During this presentation we will (1) Explain how to use Google Earth to discriminate between the six floodplain types described for South Africa; (2) Unpack what we know about the geomorphic and sedimentary processes operating in different floodplain types; (3) Discuss the potential influence of geomorphic processes on the provision of sediment-related ecosystem services (e.g., nutrient and/or toxicant assimilation); and (4) Give an indication of the characteristics and spatial distribution of floodplain types across South Africa.