| Title | Disequilibrium permafrost conditions on NWT Highway 3 |
| |
| Author | Wolfe, S A ;
Morse, P D; Hoeve, T E; Sladen, W E; Kokelj, S V; Arenson, L
U |
| Source | Proceedings of GeoQuebec 2015, 68th Canadian Geotechnical Conference and 7th Canadian Permafrost Conference; 2015 p. 1-8 |
| Image |  |
| Year | 2015 |
| Alt Series | Earth Sciences Sector, Contribution Series 20150103 |
| Meeting | GeoQuébec2015, 68th Canadian Geotechnical Conference and 7th Canadian Permafrost Conference; Québec; CA; September 20-23, 2015 |
| Document | book |
| Lang. | English |
| Media | digital |
| File format | pdf |
| Province | Northwest Territories |
| NTS | 85J; 85K |
| Area | Behchoko; Yellowknife; Great Slave Lake |
| Lat/Long WENS | -118.0000 -114.0000 63.0000 62.0000 |
| Lat/Long WENS | -118.0000 -114.0000 63.0000 62.0000 |
| Subjects | surficial geology/geomorphology; stratigraphy; sedimentology; environmental geology; engineering geology; geophysics; Nature and Environment; Science and Technology; Transport; permafrost; ground ice;
thermal analyses; thermal regimes; ground temperatures; peatlands; sediment stability; geophysical logging; strain analysis; grain size analyses; Great Slave Lowlands; glaciolacustrine sediments; Infrastructures; Road construction; Road networks;
permafrost thaw; Climate change; cumulative effects |
| Illustrations | location maps; geoscientific sketch maps; tables; profiles; geophysical logs; time series; bar graphs; ternary diagrams; plots |
| Program | Climate Change Geoscience Land-based Infrastructure |
| Released | 2015 01 01 |
| Abstract | The thermal and physical states of permafrost in natural and developed settings along NWT Highway 3 are examined and implications of recent realignment between Behchoko and Yellowknife are discussed.
Permafrost occurs in natural terrain beneath peatlands and forested fine-grained (glacio) lacustrine sediments. Natural and developed sites indicate surface warming especially beneath the highway embankment, which was straightened and reconstructed
between 1999 and 2006. Fine-grained sediments are thaw-sensitive and ice-rich. The terrain could experience up to 1.3 m of settlement with thawing of the top 5 m of permafrost. Permafrost had aggraded into the old highway embankment comprised of
fine-grained materials, but is unlikely to be sustained beneath the new highway embankment comprised primarily of blast rock. |
| Summary | (Plain Language Summary, not published)
The thermal and physical states of permafrost in natural and developed settings along NWT Highway 3 are examined and implications of recent realignment
between Behchoko and Yellowknife are discussed. Permafrost occurs in natural terrain beneath peatlands and forested fine-grained (glacio) lacustrine sediments. Natural and developed sites indicate surface warming, especially beneath the highway
embankment that was straightened and reconstructed between 1999 and 2006. Fine-grained sediments are thaw-sensitive and ice-rich. The terrain could experience up to 1.3 m of settlement if the top 5 m of permafrost were to thaw. Permafrost had
aggraded into the old highway embankment comprised of fine-grained materials, though it is unlikely to be sustained beneath the updated highway embankment comprised primarily of blast rock. |
| GEOSCAN ID | 296659 |
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