Estuarine sediments from Croatan, Roanoke, and northernmost Pamlico Sounds in the Roanoke Island area of North Carolina demonstrate complex patterns of deposition and erosion. The sediments reflect the dynamic interplay between the fresh- and salt-water systems, as controlled by the shifting barrier island inlets from the Atlantic Ocean and the fresh-water discharge from the mainland.

Utilizing the sediment data, detailed hydrographic surveys, and the historic maps of the region, the sedimentary processes of erosion and deposition within the estuaries of the Roanoke Island area have been related to the location and changes of the major inlets along the Outer Banks....