Seepage Meters and Advective Transport in Coastal Environments : Comments on ‘ ‘ Seepage Meters and Bernoulli ’ s Revenge ’ ’ By E . A . Shinn

Seepage meters were initially introduced as a viable field measurement tool for estimating fluid discharge from canal sediments by Israelson and Reeve (1944). Lee (1977) improved this device and demonstrated its utility in lakes and coastal marine systems. Since 1977, seepage meters have been used in marshes, lagoons, bays, rivers, and lakes with varying degrees of success (e.g., Shaw and Prepas 1989; Belanger and Walker 1990; Shaw and Prepas 1990; Belanger and Montgomery 1992; Reay et al. 1992; Simmons 1992; Libelo and MacIntyre 1994; Cable et al. 1996, 1997a,b; Gallager et al. 1996; Corbett et al. 1999; Martin et al. 2000; Chanton et al. 2003). Since Lee’s design— e.g., top or bottom section of a 55-gal drum with an open port placed near the rim to attach a plastic collection bag—researchers have sought to improve approaches for direct measurements of seepage discharge from sediments. Shaw and Prepas (1989) and Cable et al. (1997a) demonstrated the importance of pre-filling collection bags to prevent an anomalous influx of water associated with the mechanical properties of an empty bag attached to