The hydrological and geochemical isolation of a freshwater bog within a saline fen in north-eastern Alberta
In the oil sands development region near Fort McMurray, Alberta, wetlands cover ~62 % of the landscape, and ~95 % of these wetlands are peatlands. A saline fen was studied as a reference site for peatland reclamation. Despite highly saline conditions, a freshwater bog was observed in the path of loc...
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International Mire Conservation Group and International Peatland Society
2013
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:9e53bba3744549c58aae356f9e88d489 2023-10-01T03:56:01+02:00 The hydrological and geochemical isolation of a freshwater bog within a saline fen in north-eastern Alberta S.J. Scarlett J.S. Price 2013-10-01T00:00:00Z https://doaj.org/article/9e53bba3744549c58aae356f9e88d489 EN eng International Mire Conservation Group and International Peatland Society http://mires-and-peat.net/pages/volumes/map12/map1204.php https://doaj.org/toc/1819-754X 1819-754X https://doaj.org/article/9e53bba3744549c58aae356f9e88d489 Mires and Peat, Vol 12, Iss 04, Pp 1-12 (2013) groundwater flow peatland hydrology saline wetlands Western Boreal Plain substrate topography Ecology QH540-549.5 article 2013 ftdoajarticles 2023-09-03T00:35:22Z In the oil sands development region near Fort McMurray, Alberta, wetlands cover ~62 % of the landscape, and ~95 % of these wetlands are peatlands. A saline fen was studied as a reference site for peatland reclamation. Despite highly saline conditions, a freshwater bog was observed in the path of local saline groundwater flow. The purpose of this study was to identify the hydrological controls that have allowed the development and persistence of a bog in this setting. The presence of bog vegetation and its dilute water chemistry suggest that saline groundwater from the fen rarely enters the bog, which functions predominantly as a groundwater recharge system. Chloride (Cl–) and sodium (Na+) were the dominant ions in fen water, with concentrations averaging 5394 and 2307 mg L-1, respectively, while the concentrations in bog water were 5 and 4 mg L-1, respectively. These concentrations were reflected by salinity and electrical conductivity measurements, which in the fen averaged 9.3 ppt, and 15.8 mS cm-1, respectively, and in the bog averaged 0.1 ppt and 0.3 mS cm-1, respectively. A small ridge in the mineral substratum was found at the fen–bog margin, which created a persistent groundwater mound. Under the dry conditions experienced in early summer, groundwater flow was directed away from the bog at a rate of 14.6 mm day-1. The convex water table at the fen-bog margin impeded flow of saline water into the bog and instead directed it around the bog margin. However, the groundwater mound was eliminated during flooding in autumn, when the horizontal hydraulic gradient across the margin became negligible, suggesting the possibility of saline water ingress into the bog under these conditions. Article in Journal/Newspaper Fort McMurray Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Fort McMurray |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
groundwater flow peatland hydrology saline wetlands Western Boreal Plain substrate topography Ecology QH540-549.5 |
spellingShingle |
groundwater flow peatland hydrology saline wetlands Western Boreal Plain substrate topography Ecology QH540-549.5 S.J. Scarlett J.S. Price The hydrological and geochemical isolation of a freshwater bog within a saline fen in north-eastern Alberta |
topic_facet |
groundwater flow peatland hydrology saline wetlands Western Boreal Plain substrate topography Ecology QH540-549.5 |
description |
In the oil sands development region near Fort McMurray, Alberta, wetlands cover ~62 % of the landscape, and ~95 % of these wetlands are peatlands. A saline fen was studied as a reference site for peatland reclamation. Despite highly saline conditions, a freshwater bog was observed in the path of local saline groundwater flow. The purpose of this study was to identify the hydrological controls that have allowed the development and persistence of a bog in this setting. The presence of bog vegetation and its dilute water chemistry suggest that saline groundwater from the fen rarely enters the bog, which functions predominantly as a groundwater recharge system. Chloride (Cl–) and sodium (Na+) were the dominant ions in fen water, with concentrations averaging 5394 and 2307 mg L-1, respectively, while the concentrations in bog water were 5 and 4 mg L-1, respectively. These concentrations were reflected by salinity and electrical conductivity measurements, which in the fen averaged 9.3 ppt, and 15.8 mS cm-1, respectively, and in the bog averaged 0.1 ppt and 0.3 mS cm-1, respectively. A small ridge in the mineral substratum was found at the fen–bog margin, which created a persistent groundwater mound. Under the dry conditions experienced in early summer, groundwater flow was directed away from the bog at a rate of 14.6 mm day-1. The convex water table at the fen-bog margin impeded flow of saline water into the bog and instead directed it around the bog margin. However, the groundwater mound was eliminated during flooding in autumn, when the horizontal hydraulic gradient across the margin became negligible, suggesting the possibility of saline water ingress into the bog under these conditions. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
S.J. Scarlett J.S. Price |
author_facet |
S.J. Scarlett J.S. Price |
author_sort |
S.J. Scarlett |
title |
The hydrological and geochemical isolation of a freshwater bog within a saline fen in north-eastern Alberta |
title_short |
The hydrological and geochemical isolation of a freshwater bog within a saline fen in north-eastern Alberta |
title_full |
The hydrological and geochemical isolation of a freshwater bog within a saline fen in north-eastern Alberta |
title_fullStr |
The hydrological and geochemical isolation of a freshwater bog within a saline fen in north-eastern Alberta |
title_full_unstemmed |
The hydrological and geochemical isolation of a freshwater bog within a saline fen in north-eastern Alberta |
title_sort |
hydrological and geochemical isolation of a freshwater bog within a saline fen in north-eastern alberta |
publisher |
International Mire Conservation Group and International Peatland Society |
publishDate |
2013 |
url |
https://doaj.org/article/9e53bba3744549c58aae356f9e88d489 |
geographic |
Fort McMurray |
geographic_facet |
Fort McMurray |
genre |
Fort McMurray |
genre_facet |
Fort McMurray |
op_source |
Mires and Peat, Vol 12, Iss 04, Pp 1-12 (2013) |
op_relation |
http://mires-and-peat.net/pages/volumes/map12/map1204.php https://doaj.org/toc/1819-754X 1819-754X https://doaj.org/article/9e53bba3744549c58aae356f9e88d489 |
_version_ |
1778525090226372608 |