GEOCHEMISTRY AND NOBLE GASES OF PERMAFROST GROUNDWATER AND GROUND ICE IN YUKON AND THE NORTHWEST TERRITORIES, CANADA NICHOLAS CHARLES UTTING Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies University of Ottawa in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Ph.D. degree in Earth Sciences Ottawa-Carleton Geoscience Centre and University of Ottawa Ottawa, Canada Thèse soumise à Faculté des etudes supérieures et postdoctorales Université d’Ottawa en vue d’obtention du doctorate en Sciences de la Terre Centre Géoscientifique d’Ottawa-Carleton et Université d’Ottawa Ottawa, Canada © NICHOLAS CHARLES UTTING, OTTAWA, CANADA, 2012 ABSTRACT: ................................................................................................................................................... IV RÉSUMÉ ......................................................................................................................................................... VI ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: ....................................................................................................................... VIII CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 PERMAFROST ......................................................................................................................................... 2 1.2.1 Hydrology: Active Layer and Runoff .......................................................................................... 4 1.2.2 Groundwater and Talik ............................................................................................................... 6 1.2.3 Ground Ice and Cave Ice ............................................................................................................ 9 1.3 KNOWLEDGE GAPS .............................................................................................................................. 11 1.4 OBJECTIVES......................................................................................................................................... 14 1.5 STATEMENT OF ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTION .......................................................................................... 15 CHAPTER 2: METHODS ............................................................................................................................. 16 2.1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................... 16 2.2 PHYSICAL METHODS ........................................................................................................................... 16 2.2.1 River Flow................................................................................................................................. 16 2.2.2 Traditional Cryostratigraphic Methods .................................................................................... 16 2.3 GEOCHEMICAL AND ISOTOPIC METHODS ............................................................................................ 17 2.3.1 Gases in Geochemistry ............................................................................................................. 19 2.3.2 Entrapped Gases in Ground Ice ................................................................................................ 19 2.4 NOBLE GASES ..................................................................................................................................... 20 2.4.1 Noble gases: Recharge temperature ......................................................................................... 22 2.4.2 Noble Gases: Groundwater Dating .......................................................................................... 25 2.4.3 Sample Collection ..................................................................................................................... 27 2.4.4 Sample Analysis ........................................................................................................................ 28 2.5 SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................... 29 CHAPTER 3: GROUNDWATER CONTRIBUTION TO DISCHARGE IN PERMAFROST WATERSHEDS: TRIBUTARIES OF THE NORTHERN MACKENZIE RIVER, NWT, CANADA .. 30 3.1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................... 30 3.2 BACKGROUND ..................................................................................................................................... 30 3.3 SAMPLING SITES ................................................................................................................................. 32 3.4 METHODS ............................................................................................................................................ 47 3.5 RESULTS AND INTERPRETATION: ......................................................................................................... 50 3.5.1 Major Ion Geochemistry ........................................................................................................... 50 3.5.2 Determining Groundwater Contributions Using Major Ion Chemistry .................................... 61 13 3.5.3 Groundwater Recharge: DIC, Calcite Saturation Index and C ............................................. 73 3.5.4 Groundwater Recharge: Oxygen and Deuterium ..................................................................... 75 3.5.5 Groundwater Recharge and Residence Time: Noble Gases ..................................................... 80 3.6 DISCUSSION: ....................................................................................................................................... 84 3.6.1 Groundwater Recharge ............................................................................................................. 84 3.6.2 Groundwater Flow .................................................................................................................... 86 3.6.3 Groundwater Discharge ........................................................................................................... 89 3.6.4 Conceptual Model of Groundwater Discharge ......................................................................... 91 3.7 CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................................................... 95 CHAPTER 4: ORIGIN AND FLOW DYNAMICS OF PERENNIAL GROUNDWATER DISCHARGE IN CONTINUOUS PERMAFROST TERRAIN ON THE FISHING BRANCH RIVER BASIN, NORTHERN YUKON, CANADA: A CASE STUDY USING ISOTOPES AND NOBLE GASES ........ 98 4.1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................... 99 4.2 STUDY AREA ..................................................................................................................................... 101 4.3 STUDIED SITES AND FIELD SAMPLING ................................................................................................ 103 4.4 ANALYTICAL METHODS ..................................................................................................................... 105 ii 4.4.1 Major Ion Chemistry and Isotopes .......................................................................................... 105 4.4.2 Noble gases ............................................................................................................................. 106 4.5 RESULTS AND INTERPRETATION ........................................................................................................ 108 4.5.1 Discharge Measurements ........................................................................................................ 108 4.5.2 Temperature Loggers .............................................................................................................. 109 4.5.3 Major Ion Chemistry and Isotopes .......................................................................................... 110 4.5.4 Noble Gases ............................................................................................................................ 118 4.5.5 Estimation of Baseflow ........................................................................................................... 125 4.6 DISCUSSION....................................................................................................................................... 128 4.7 CONCLUSIONS ................................................................................................................................... 131 CHAPTER 5: USING NOBLE GAS RATIOS TO DETERMINE THE ORIGIN OF SUBSURFACE ICE IN PERMAFROST ............................................................................................................................... 132 5.1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................. 133 5.2 PRINCIPLES IN USING NOBLE GASES TO DETERMINE SUBSURFACE ICE TYPES ................................. 135 5.3 SITE DESCRIPTIONS ..........................................................................................................................