Summary:

Paper concerns the investigations of riverbed sediments in the meandering sector of the Border Odra, In the frame of meander I. As a result of fluvial processes the Odra riverbed is exposed to deformations, leading to often changes of the river itinerary. In the historical time, many meander breaks were registered, the last in 1967 (Meander IV) and in 1997 (Meander I). In the old river bed the discharge is gradually decreasing and the substantial part of the discharge is flowinging through the new channel. It leads to gradual silting of the old river part. The intensive formation of bars and of islands is observed. In the upper part of the old meander, mainly the bed load is deposed, and in the middle and lower part – the suspended load. The superficial part of the layer (cover) is exposed to the formation of pavement. The size of the pavement cover is equal 8,4–9,8 cm, and the granulometry of the lower layer (20–40 cm) equal to d₅₀ = 2,3–2,9 cm. The islands formed by fine sediments were covered in 3-4 years by intensive vegetation (trees and bushes). This process causes an important decreasing of flow velocity in the old channel. The increasing of the flow discharge in the new channel leads to the erosion of banks and to the deposition of the eroded material (gravel and stones) downstream of the Meander I, in the form of bars (Photographs 1 and 2).