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Accelerated permafrost thaw and increased drainage in the active layer : Responses from experimental surface alteration

Zastruzny, Sebastian F. ; Ingeman-Nielsen, Thomas ; Zhang, Wenxin LU orcid and Elberling, Bo (2023) In Cold Regions Science and Technology 212.
Abstract

Erosion and infrastructure in the Arctic can change the thickness of the active layer which can subsequently alternate the thermal-hydrological regime and change the drainage patterns on slopes. Previous studies have shown that drainage can either decrease due to the movement of water occurring in deeper soil layers with lower permeability or increase due to the formation of features like gullies and channels. In a field experiment conducted in Qaanaaq, Greenland, the surface topography was altered by adding 35 cm soil in one treatment, removing 33 cm in another, while an untreated plot measuring 10 × 10 m was maintained for comparison purposes. The temperature and water content of these plots were monitored in the three following... (More)

Erosion and infrastructure in the Arctic can change the thickness of the active layer which can subsequently alternate the thermal-hydrological regime and change the drainage patterns on slopes. Previous studies have shown that drainage can either decrease due to the movement of water occurring in deeper soil layers with lower permeability or increase due to the formation of features like gullies and channels. In a field experiment conducted in Qaanaaq, Greenland, the surface topography was altered by adding 35 cm soil in one treatment, removing 33 cm in another, while an untreated plot measuring 10 × 10 m was maintained for comparison purposes. The temperature and water content of these plots were monitored in the three following years. Based on field measurements, a 1-dimensional model was set up in CoupModel to simulate the field experiment and quantify changes in the thickness of the saturated zone and drainage as a consequence of the treatment. Both field observations and simulations show that the addition and removal of soil changed the thickness of the saturated layer in the active layer, which changed the thermal properties in the soil and, thus, the response of thawing or recovery of permafrost. The simulations showed that during the summer depressions there were higher water contents, which accelerated warming of the soil and increased permafrost thawing of 35.7 cm in depth. In contrast, raising the soil surface aggregated only 19.8 cm of permafrost due to higher buffering from lower water contents. Changed active layer thickness altered the thickness of the saturated zone, leading to changed drainage patterns: In depressions, first drainage occurs three days earlier, and maximum daily drainage is increased by 154% as compared to ambient conditions. In contrast, raising the surface delayed the runoff from the plot by up to eight days, and decreased the maximum daily drainage to 72%. Effects of the treatment were most pronounced during the first year after the experiment, with diminishing effects during the consecutive year as the system equilibrated to the new state. Results from our study can advance our understanding of impacts of both natural and human-induced surface alterations on active layer thickening and water movement in permafrost-affected areas, which ultimately affect the entire ecosystem and the living conditions for local communities.

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type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Active layer dynamics, Permafrost degradation, Simulations, Water flow
in
Cold Regions Science and Technology
volume
212
article number
103899
publisher
Elsevier
external identifiers
  • scopus:85160297172
ISSN
0165-232X
DOI
10.1016/j.coldregions.2023.103899
language
English
LU publication?
yes
additional info
Funding Information: This work was supported by the Danish National Research Foundation (Center for Permafrost, CENPERM DNRF100). W. Z. was supported by the grants from Swedish Research Council VR ( 2020–05338 ) and Swedish National Space Agency ( 209/19 ). We thank ASIAQ, especially Kirsty Langley, for providing the climate data from the Airport Qaanaaq. We thank Per-Erik Jansson for the time to discuss the model set up and suggest how to improve the model results. We appreciate the help of the students of the 2017 DTU ARTEK field group that assisted with collecting many samples. We are grateful to the many local people in Qaanaaq that were hospitable and helpful, especially to Kim Petersen who helped with accommodation and the installation of the field experiment and Dan D. Norman for allowing us to engage the local school in parts of the project. We appreciate the constructive feedback by two anonymous reviewers and editors on previous versions of the manuscript. This study is a contribution to the strategic research areas Modeling the Regional and Global Earth System (MERGE) and Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services in a Changing Climate (BECC) at Lund University. Funding Information: This work was supported by the Danish National Research Foundation (Center for Permafrost, CENPERM DNRF100). W. Z. was supported by the grants from Swedish Research Council VR (2020–05338) and Swedish National Space Agency (209/19). We thank ASIAQ, especially Kirsty Langley, for providing the climate data from the Airport Qaanaaq. We thank Per-Erik Jansson for the time to discuss the model set up and suggest how to improve the model results. We appreciate the help of the students of the 2017 DTU ARTEK field group that assisted with collecting many samples. We are grateful to the many local people in Qaanaaq that were hospitable and helpful, especially to Kim Petersen who helped with accommodation and the installation of the field experiment and Dan D. Norman for allowing us to engage the local school in parts of the project. We appreciate the constructive feedback by two anonymous reviewers and editors on previous versions of the manuscript. This study is a contribution to the strategic research areas Modeling the Regional and Global Earth System (MERGE) and Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services in a Changing Climate (BECC) at Lund University. Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Authors
id
5caa8c5f-ee6d-4fc8-a473-63f53220e54f
date added to LUP
2023-06-10 03:36:45
date last changed
2023-06-16 13:38:36
@article{5caa8c5f-ee6d-4fc8-a473-63f53220e54f,
  abstract     = {{<p>Erosion and infrastructure in the Arctic can change the thickness of the active layer which can subsequently alternate the thermal-hydrological regime and change the drainage patterns on slopes. Previous studies have shown that drainage can either decrease due to the movement of water occurring in deeper soil layers with lower permeability or increase due to the formation of features like gullies and channels. In a field experiment conducted in Qaanaaq, Greenland, the surface topography was altered by adding 35 cm soil in one treatment, removing 33 cm in another, while an untreated plot measuring 10 × 10 m was maintained for comparison purposes. The temperature and water content of these plots were monitored in the three following years. Based on field measurements, a 1-dimensional model was set up in CoupModel to simulate the field experiment and quantify changes in the thickness of the saturated zone and drainage as a consequence of the treatment. Both field observations and simulations show that the addition and removal of soil changed the thickness of the saturated layer in the active layer, which changed the thermal properties in the soil and, thus, the response of thawing or recovery of permafrost. The simulations showed that during the summer depressions there were higher water contents, which accelerated warming of the soil and increased permafrost thawing of 35.7 cm in depth. In contrast, raising the soil surface aggregated only 19.8 cm of permafrost due to higher buffering from lower water contents. Changed active layer thickness altered the thickness of the saturated zone, leading to changed drainage patterns: In depressions, first drainage occurs three days earlier, and maximum daily drainage is increased by 154% as compared to ambient conditions. In contrast, raising the surface delayed the runoff from the plot by up to eight days, and decreased the maximum daily drainage to 72%. Effects of the treatment were most pronounced during the first year after the experiment, with diminishing effects during the consecutive year as the system equilibrated to the new state. Results from our study can advance our understanding of impacts of both natural and human-induced surface alterations on active layer thickening and water movement in permafrost-affected areas, which ultimately affect the entire ecosystem and the living conditions for local communities.</p>}},
  author       = {{Zastruzny, Sebastian F. and Ingeman-Nielsen, Thomas and Zhang, Wenxin and Elberling, Bo}},
  issn         = {{0165-232X}},
  keywords     = {{Active layer dynamics; Permafrost degradation; Simulations; Water flow}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{Elsevier}},
  series       = {{Cold Regions Science and Technology}},
  title        = {{Accelerated permafrost thaw and increased drainage in the active layer : Responses from experimental surface alteration}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.coldregions.2023.103899}},
  doi          = {{10.1016/j.coldregions.2023.103899}},
  volume       = {{212}},
  year         = {{2023}},
}