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 Geological Survey of Canada
Natural Resources Canada > Earth Sciences Sector > Geological Survey of Canada > Permafrost
Permafrost
Climate Change, Permafrost, and Community Infrastructure: A Compilation of Background Material from a Pilot Study of Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories

Stephen Robinson
Réjean Couture
Margo Burgess

Geological Survey of Canada
Open File #3867
May 2002

Abstract

With support from the Government of Canada's Climate Change Action Fund (CCAF), the Geological Survey of Canada (GSC) has initiated community case studies examining infrastructure sensitivity to the impacts of permafrost degradation under climate warming. Much of the infrastructure in northern communities relies on the properties of frozen materials for stability. As the Mackenzie valley and delta region has undergone the most warming (+1.7°C) over the last century in Canada (Environment Canada, 1995), and is expected to experience continued significant warming, warming of the ground could degrade the performance of many existing and future structures including roads, foundations, utilities, and embankments. This report represents a summary of present permafrost, surficial geology, and infrastructure conditions in Tuktoyaktuk, selected as a second pilot community for the project. The first selected pilot community was Norman Wells (Robinson et al., 2001). The material includes data compilation and reviews of the community (history, population, services, economic activities), climatic conditions (current air temperature and precipitation, general trends, and climate change), terrain conditions (surficial deposits as well as their geotechnical and geothermal properties), permafrost (distribution, temperature profiles, ground ice distribution), and infrastructure, including buildings, transportation, communication, municipal service facility (past and present, associated foundation, maintenance history and performance). A brief discussion is also presented on how climate change could affect the infrastructure in Tuktoyaktuk and possible costs associated with the development of adaptation strategies.

Contents

Abstract

Résumé

List of Tables

List of Figures

  1. Introduction
    1. Introduction
    2. Objectives and context
    3. Rationale: The impact of climate change upon infrastructure in northern communities
      1. Introduction
      2. Impacts on infrastructure
    4. Conclusion
  2. Community Profile
    1. Location
    2. A Land of Caribou, A gateway for offshore oil exploration
    3. Population, services and economy
    4. Infrastructure types in Tuktoykatuk
  3. Climate
    1. Present conditions
      1. Sunlight
      2. Temperature
      3. Precipitation
    2. Trends and climate warming
    3. Climate change scenarios
  4. Surficial Geology
    1. Introduction
    2. General surficial geology
      1. Morainal deposits
      2. Glaciofluvial deposits
      3. Lacustrine plain deposits
      4. Organic deposits
      5. Marine deposits
  5. Permafrost
    1. Introduction
    2. Ground temperature near Tuktoyaktuk
    3. Ground ice, massive ground ice, and icy sediments
    4. Engineering properties of permafrost soils
      1. Physical and geotechnical properties
        1. Grain size distribution
        2. Gravimetric water content
        3. Dry density and specific gravity
        4. Atterberg limits and indexes
      2. Other geotechnical and thermal properties
        1. Standard penetration test
        2. Thermal properties
        3. Salinity
  6. Infrastructure
    1. Introduction
    2. Infrastructure
    3. Foundation systems
    4. Performance of infrastructure
    5. Coastal erosion
      1. Processes
      2. Chronological actions in coastal erosion protection
        1. Status of present shore protection
          1. Overtopping
          2. Undermining at the ends
          3. Undermining at the toe
          4. Sapping
          5. Thaw subsidence
  7. Infrastructure and climate change impacts
    1. Introduction
    2. The potential for thermokarst and accelerated coastal erosion
    3. Infrastructure
      1. General impact
      2. Housing and buildings
      3. Transportation facilities
    4. Conclusion

Acknowledgments

References

Appendice

  • Appendix A: Borehole temperature records from within the community
  • Appendix B: Tuktoyaktuk Borehole Water Content by Soil Texture
  • Appendix C: Tuktoyaktuk Borehole Water Content by Landform Class

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