Regional Conference on Permafrost 2021 and the 19th International Conference on Cold Regions Engineering
Permafrost Investigations below the Marine Limit at Nain, Nunatsiavut, Canada
Publication: Permafrost 2021: Merging Permafrost Science and Cold Regions Engineering
ABSTRACT
Discontinuous permafrost is a challenge for development in the coastal communities of Nunatsiavut, Labrador, northeast Canada, where local high relief limits suitable terrain for construction. These issues are particularly pronounced in Nain, the largest and northernmost community in Nunatsiavut, which is undergoing rapid population growth and expansion. In this study, DC electrical resistivity tomography was combined with geotechnical borehole records and in situ field data to evaluate the distribution of permafrost at four sites in the lowest parts of the community. Permafrost was identified in at least six of the seven geophysical transects, including beneath culturally critical community infrastructure. A supra-permafrost talik was imaged beneath a convenience store that has experienced extreme differential subsidence, demonstrating that excess ice exists in some of the region’s frozen sediments. The presence of permafrost near the shoreline likely reflects ground cooling due to wind-scouring of snow at the exposed sites and the thermal impact of frost-susceptible sediments. Despite uncertainties in geophysical interpretation due to local site disturbance and coarse near-surface fill at some sites, these results have important implications for future development in this northern coastal community.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We acknowledge that this research was undertaken on the traditional lands of the Labrador Inuit with the permission of the Nunatsiavut Government. We thank the Nunatsiavut Research Centre, the Nunatsiavut Government, and the Labrador Institute for their logistical and in-kind support, and we gratefully acknowledge Tom Sheldon, Christina Goldhar, Carla Pamak, Kristeen McTavish, and Rodd Laing for their collaboration and support of this work. We are grateful to Jason Smith of Exp Services Inc. and Jamie Ryan of Budgell’s Equipment and Rental Ltd. for their insightful discussions and to Alex Brooker, Frédéric Dwyer-Samuel, and Caitlin Lapalme for their field or logistical assistance in 2014 and/or 2018. Financial support for this research was provided by the University of Ottawa, Queen’s University, Polar Knowledge Canada, and the W. Garfield Weston Foundation.
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Permafrost 2021: Merging Permafrost Science and Cold Regions Engineering
Pages: 38 - 48
Editor: Jon Zufelt, Ph.D., HDR Alaska
ISBN (Online): 978-0-7844-8358-9
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© 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers.
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Published online: Oct 21, 2021
Published in print: Oct 21, 2021
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