The Northwest Territories Thermokarst Mapping Collective: a northern-driven mapping collaborative toward understanding the effects of permafrost thaw
This paper documents the first comprehensive inventory of thermokarst and thaw-sensitive terrain indicators for a 2 million km2 region of northwestern Canada. This is accomplished through the Thermokarst Mapping Collective (TMC), a research collaborative to systematically inventory indicators of per...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Canadian Science Publishing
2023-12-01
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| Series: | Arctic Science |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/as-2023-0009 |
| _version_ | 1829091283715489792 |
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| author | Steven V. Kokelj Tristan Gingras-Hill Seamus V. Daly Peter D. Morse Stephen A. Wolfe Ashley C.A. Rudy Jurjen van der Sluijs Niels Weiss H. Brendan O'Neill Jennifer L. Baltzer Trevor C. Lantz Carolyn Gibson Dieter Cazon Robert H. Fraser Duane G. Froese Garfield Giff Charles Klengenberg Scott F. Lamoureux William L. Quinton Merritt R. Turetsky Alexandre Chiasson Celtie Ferguson Mike Newton Mike Pope Jason A. Paul M. Alice Wilson Joseph M. Young |
| author_facet | Steven V. Kokelj Tristan Gingras-Hill Seamus V. Daly Peter D. Morse Stephen A. Wolfe Ashley C.A. Rudy Jurjen van der Sluijs Niels Weiss H. Brendan O'Neill Jennifer L. Baltzer Trevor C. Lantz Carolyn Gibson Dieter Cazon Robert H. Fraser Duane G. Froese Garfield Giff Charles Klengenberg Scott F. Lamoureux William L. Quinton Merritt R. Turetsky Alexandre Chiasson Celtie Ferguson Mike Newton Mike Pope Jason A. Paul M. Alice Wilson Joseph M. Young |
| author_sort | Steven V. Kokelj |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper documents the first comprehensive inventory of thermokarst and thaw-sensitive terrain indicators for a 2 million km2 region of northwestern Canada. This is accomplished through the Thermokarst Mapping Collective (TMC), a research collaborative to systematically inventory indicators of permafrost thaw sensitivity by mapping and aerial assessments across the Northwest Territories (NT), Canada. The increase in NT-based permafrost capacity has fostered science leadership and collaboration with government, academic, and community researchers to enable project implementation. Ongoing communications and outreach have informed study design and strengthened Indigenous and stakeholder relationships. Documentation of theme-based methods supported mapper training, and flexible data infrastructure facilitated progress by Canada-wide researchers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The TMC inventory of thermokarst and thaw-sensitive landforms agree well with fine-scale empirical mapping (69%–84% accuracy) and aerial inventory (74%–96% accuracy) datasets. National- and circumpolar-scale modelling of sensitive permafrost terrain contrasts significantly with TMC outputs, highlighting their limitations and the value of empirically based mapping approaches. We demonstrate that the multiparameter TMC outputs support a holistic understanding and refined depictions of permafrost terrain sensitivity, provide novel opportunities for regional syntheses, and inform future modelling approaches, which are urgently required to comprehend better what permafrost thaw means for Canada's North. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T10:43:35Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7e959053e1274990987f61640773f364 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2368-7460 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T10:43:35Z |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | Canadian Science Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Arctic Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-7e959053e1274990987f61640773f3642023-12-01T12:07:08ZengCanadian Science PublishingArctic Science2368-74602023-12-019488691810.1139/as-2023-0009The Northwest Territories Thermokarst Mapping Collective: a northern-driven mapping collaborative toward understanding the effects of permafrost thawSteven V. Kokelj0Tristan Gingras-Hill1Seamus V. Daly2Peter D. Morse3Stephen A. Wolfe4Ashley C.A. Rudy5Jurjen van der Sluijs6Niels Weiss7H. Brendan O'Neill8Jennifer L. Baltzer9Trevor C. Lantz10Carolyn Gibson11Dieter Cazon12Robert H. Fraser13Duane G. Froese14Garfield Giff15Charles Klengenberg16Scott F. Lamoureux17William L. Quinton18Merritt R. Turetsky19Alexandre Chiasson20Celtie Ferguson21Mike Newton22Mike Pope23Jason A. Paul24M. Alice Wilson25Joseph M. Young26Northwest Territories Geological Survey, Government of the Northwest Territories, Yellowknife, NT X1A 2L9, CanadaDepartment of Biology, Wilfrid Laurier University, Yellowknife Office, Waterloo, ON N2L 3C5, CanadaDepartment of Geography and Environmental Studies, Wilfrid Laurier University, Yellowknife Office, Waterloo, ON N2L 3C5, CanadaGeological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada, Ottawa, ON K1A 0E8, CanadaGeological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada, Ottawa, ON K1A 0E8, CanadaNorthwest Territories Geological Survey, Government of the Northwest Territories, Yellowknife, NT X1A 2L9, CanadaNorthwest Territories Centre for Geomatics, Government of the Northwest Territories, Yellowknife, NT X1A 2L9, CanadaNorthwest Territories Geological Survey, Government of the Northwest Territories, Yellowknife, NT X1A 2L9, CanadaGeological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada, Ottawa, ON K1A 0E8, CanadaBiology Department, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, ON N2L 3C5, CanadaSchool of Environmental Studies, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8W 3P2, CanadaIntegrative Biology, University of Guelph Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, CanadaŁı́ı́dlı̨ı̨ Kų́ę́ First Nation, Lands & Resources, Fort Simpson, NT X0E 0N0, CanadaCanada Centre for Mapping and Earth Observation, Natural Resources Canada, Ottawa, ON K1A 0G1, CanadaDepartment of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2E3, CanadaAurora Research Institute, Inuvik, NT X0E 0T0, CanadaInuvialuit Land Administration, Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, Inuvik, NT X0E 0T0, CanadaDepartment of Geography and Planning, Queen's University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, CanadaDepartment of Geography and Environmental Studies, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, ON N2L 3C5, CanadaInstitute of Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, 80309 CO, USADepartment of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2E3, CanadaAurora Research Institute, Inuvik, NT X0E 0T0, CanadaSchool of Environmental Studies, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8W 3P2, CanadaDepartment of Geography and Planning, Queen's University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, CanadaBiology Department, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, ON N2L 3C5, CanadaNorthwest Territories Geological Survey, Government of the Northwest Territories, Yellowknife, NT X1A 2L9, CanadaDepartment of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2E3, CanadaThis paper documents the first comprehensive inventory of thermokarst and thaw-sensitive terrain indicators for a 2 million km2 region of northwestern Canada. This is accomplished through the Thermokarst Mapping Collective (TMC), a research collaborative to systematically inventory indicators of permafrost thaw sensitivity by mapping and aerial assessments across the Northwest Territories (NT), Canada. The increase in NT-based permafrost capacity has fostered science leadership and collaboration with government, academic, and community researchers to enable project implementation. Ongoing communications and outreach have informed study design and strengthened Indigenous and stakeholder relationships. Documentation of theme-based methods supported mapper training, and flexible data infrastructure facilitated progress by Canada-wide researchers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The TMC inventory of thermokarst and thaw-sensitive landforms agree well with fine-scale empirical mapping (69%–84% accuracy) and aerial inventory (74%–96% accuracy) datasets. National- and circumpolar-scale modelling of sensitive permafrost terrain contrasts significantly with TMC outputs, highlighting their limitations and the value of empirically based mapping approaches. We demonstrate that the multiparameter TMC outputs support a holistic understanding and refined depictions of permafrost terrain sensitivity, provide novel opportunities for regional syntheses, and inform future modelling approaches, which are urgently required to comprehend better what permafrost thaw means for Canada's North.https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/as-2023-0009permafrostthermokarstperiglacialterrain sensitivityclimate change |
| spellingShingle | Steven V. Kokelj Tristan Gingras-Hill Seamus V. Daly Peter D. Morse Stephen A. Wolfe Ashley C.A. Rudy Jurjen van der Sluijs Niels Weiss H. Brendan O'Neill Jennifer L. Baltzer Trevor C. Lantz Carolyn Gibson Dieter Cazon Robert H. Fraser Duane G. Froese Garfield Giff Charles Klengenberg Scott F. Lamoureux William L. Quinton Merritt R. Turetsky Alexandre Chiasson Celtie Ferguson Mike Newton Mike Pope Jason A. Paul M. Alice Wilson Joseph M. Young The Northwest Territories Thermokarst Mapping Collective: a northern-driven mapping collaborative toward understanding the effects of permafrost thaw Arctic Science permafrost thermokarst periglacial terrain sensitivity climate change |
| title | The Northwest Territories Thermokarst Mapping Collective: a northern-driven mapping collaborative toward understanding the effects of permafrost thaw |
| title_full | The Northwest Territories Thermokarst Mapping Collective: a northern-driven mapping collaborative toward understanding the effects of permafrost thaw |
| title_fullStr | The Northwest Territories Thermokarst Mapping Collective: a northern-driven mapping collaborative toward understanding the effects of permafrost thaw |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Northwest Territories Thermokarst Mapping Collective: a northern-driven mapping collaborative toward understanding the effects of permafrost thaw |
| title_short | The Northwest Territories Thermokarst Mapping Collective: a northern-driven mapping collaborative toward understanding the effects of permafrost thaw |
| title_sort | northwest territories thermokarst mapping collective a northern driven mapping collaborative toward understanding the effects of permafrost thaw |
| topic | permafrost thermokarst periglacial terrain sensitivity climate change |
| url | https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/as-2023-0009 |
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