Which primary mechanism leads to the isolation and eventual formation of an oxbow lake?

💡 Explanation

When differential erosion occurs along the outer bend of a meandering river, the river cuts more directly across the floodplain, bypassing the loop and forming an oxbow lake. Therefore differential erosion via stream meandering isolates the lake, rather than tectonic subsidence, artificial channelization, or glacial scouring which are unrelated processes.

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• Which risk increases following a catastrophic levee breach due to overtopping during an extreme flood event?
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