More than just snowmelt: integrated watershed science for changing climate and permafrost at the Cape Bounty Arctic Watershed Observatory

• Published in: WIREs Water
• Main Authors: Lamoureux, Scott F., Lafrenière, Melissa J.
• Other Authors: Environment and Climate Change Canada, ArcticNet, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2017
• Subjects: Arctic; Cape Bounty; permafrost
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/wat2.1255; https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1002%2Fwat2.1255; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/wat2.1255; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1002/wat2.1255; https://wires.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/wat2.1255

The Cape Bounty Arctic Watershed Observatory (CBAWO) was established in 2003 to investigate the hydrological processes and impacts associated with climate and permafrost change in the High Arctic. Comprehensive data collection at the paired watersheds has spanned a period containing both the coldest and warmest melt season conditions, including the recent decade that is the warmest on record. Through this period, the hydrological regime has transitioned from a nival (snowmelt) dominated to increased importance of rainfall runoff and baseflow. This hydrological shift and associated environmental changes have altered the seasonality and magnitude of fluxes. Permafrost degradation has resulted in both localized and catchment‐wide soil and runoff perturbations, broadly increasing solute and nutrient flushing, with more intense sediment and solute impacts where physical disturbances have occurred. The recovery time to perturbations diverges with sedimentary systems responding in approximately 5 years, while dissolved fluxes remaining high due to repeated thermal perturbations. Permafrost carbon in this setting is relatively old and labile, both in particulate and dissolved phases. Permafrost degradation has altered microbial activity in soils, and increased nitrification in disturbed settings, which points to complex biogeochemical responses to climate and permafrost change. Sustained research activity at CBAWO has revealed new complexity in the hydrological and biogeochemical functioning of High Arctic watersheds. Long‐term observatories like CBAWO provide critical context to place observations in, especially during periods of change, and are necessary to develop a comprehensive understanding of hydrological change and water security in the region. WIREs Water 2018, 5:e1255. doi: 10.1002/wat2.1255 This article is categorized under: Science of Water > Water and Environmental Change Science of Water > Hydrological Processes