Climate change, permafrost, and community infrastructure: a compilation of background material from a pilot study of Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories

Abstract

With support from the Government of Canadas Climate Change Action Fund (CCAF), the Geological Survey of Canada (GSC) has initiated community case studies in which infrastructure sensitivity to the impacts of permafrost degradation under climate warming are examined. Much of the infrastructure in northern communities relies on the properties of frozen materials for stability. As the Mackenzie valley and adjacent delta region has undergone the most warming (+1.7°C) over the last century in Canada (Environment Canada, 1995) and continued significant warming is expected, warming of the ground could degrade the performance of many existing and future structures including roads, foundations, utilities, and embankments. This report is 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 in the present report includes compilation of data 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 presented on the effect of climate change on the infrastructure in Tuktoyaktuk and includes the possible costs associated with the development of adaptation strategies.

Past and future forcing of Beaufort Sea coastal change

“…Freezing of sediments will still occur in winter as seasonal low temperatures will be below freezing but the duration of freezing will be shorter. In summer, mainly due to a lengthened thaw season rather than increased summer temperatures, thaw will likely penetrate deeper, thickening the active layer, and promoting active layer detachments and retrogressive thaw failure of ice-bonded slopes (Couture et al, 2002). that, for 54 open-water season wind events with water-level and ice data, peak surge height is significantly positively correlated (α = 0.05) with peak wind speed, mean wind direction, percentage of open water and minimum air pressure.…”

Vulnerability to climate change in the Arctic: A case study from Arctic Bay, Canada

“…Other risks are associated with infrastructure. Throughout the Arctic, coastal erosion and retreat, and melting permafrost have damaged infrastructure and cultural heritage sites (Shaw et al, 1998;Couture et al, 2002).…”

Climate change and Canada’s north coast: research trends, progress, and future directions

“…Some of these options have an intentional and substantial focus on responding to climate change impacts, both experienced and projected. Such climate-centered adaptations that have been identified for the north coast include investing in coastal protection measures such as installing Longard tubes (woven polyethylene fabric tubes filled with sand), installing wave breakers, relocating critical infrastructure, investing in new port and fish processing facilities, hazard mapping, and retrofitting older infrastructure through the utilization of adaptive foundation types (e.g., piles and spaceframes) (Champalle et al 2013;Couture et al 2002;Forbes et al 2014;Johnson et al 2003;Lamoureux et al 2015). Alternatively, vulnerability-centered adaptations have been identified to focus on underlying social-economicpolitical factors that lead to climate vulnerability by undermining or constraining adaptive capacity and (or) increasing sensitivity to impacts.…”