Construction on Permafrost

Abstract

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Introduction to Fundamental and Applied Research on Permafrost in Canada

“…Permafrost is a condition that, near the ground surface, is primarily governed by climate, and as long-term atmospheric conditions change, we expect ground temperatures to follow suit. The practical significance of permafrost for communities and infrastructure in northern Canada stems from the presence of ice close to the surface of the ground and from changes in the geotechnical properties of the ground that occur as nearsurface temperatures approach and cross 0 °C (Mackay 1970;Crawford and Johnston 1971). These concerns stimulated research on permafrost in North America after the Second World War and drove subsequent, continuing, activity as mineral development in the North began on an industrial scale (Brown 1970).…”

The Mapping of Permafrost

“…A third group of maps relates permafrost conditions to other environmental phenomena, usually the mean annual air temperature (Brown, 1967 andCrawford and Johnston, 1971). Others depict permafrost in relation either to the extent of Quaternary glaciations or to features indicative of Pleistocene climatic conditions (Hughes, 1973).…”