Which phenomenon significantly reduces a river's sediment-carrying capacity when it enters a lake or ocean?

💡 Explanation

When a river enters a lake or ocean, the flow velocity decreases dramatically because its energy is dispersed over a wider area, reducing its competence because larger particles then settle out of suspension. Therefore, reduced flow velocity causes sedimentation, rather than increased turbulence, weathering, or armoring, which exert different forces in varied conditions.

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• Which outcome occurs upon the atmospheric introduction of high-silica pyroclastic material?
• Which landscape outcome results when groundwater flows along limestone fractures?
• Which pattern results when differential ice ablation occurs?
• Which climatic impact occurs during an El Niño event because of weakened equatorial upwelling?