Long-term climate-influenced land cover change in discontinuous permafrost peatland complexes
The discontinuous permafrost zone is undergoing rapid transformation as a result of unprecedented permafrost thaw brought on by circumpolar climate warming. Rapid warming over recent decades has significantly decreased the area underlain by permafrost in peatland complexes. It has catalysed extensiv...
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Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3301-2021 https://doaj.org/article/ee430f6cd2704c1382e373acbc23a021 |
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:ee430f6cd2704c1382e373acbc23a021 2023-05-15T17:46:47+02:00 Long-term climate-influenced land cover change in discontinuous permafrost peatland complexes O. Carpino K. Haynes R. Connon J. Craig É. Devoie W. Quinton 2021-06-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3301-2021 https://doaj.org/article/ee430f6cd2704c1382e373acbc23a021 EN eng Copernicus Publications https://hess.copernicus.org/articles/25/3301/2021/hess-25-3301-2021.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1027-5606 https://doaj.org/toc/1607-7938 doi:10.5194/hess-25-3301-2021 1027-5606 1607-7938 https://doaj.org/article/ee430f6cd2704c1382e373acbc23a021 Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, Vol 25, Pp 3301-3317 (2021) Technology T Environmental technology. Sanitary engineering TD1-1066 Geography. Anthropology. Recreation G Environmental sciences GE1-350 article 2021 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3301-2021 2022-12-31T12:17:12Z The discontinuous permafrost zone is undergoing rapid transformation as a result of unprecedented permafrost thaw brought on by circumpolar climate warming. Rapid warming over recent decades has significantly decreased the area underlain by permafrost in peatland complexes. It has catalysed extensive landscape transitions in the Taiga Plains of northwestern Canada, transforming forest-dominated landscapes to those that are wetland dominated. However, the advanced stages of this landscape transition, and the hydrological and thermal mechanisms and feedbacks governing these environments, are unclear. This study explores the current trajectory of land cover change across a 300 000 km 2 region of northwestern Canada's discontinuous permafrost zone by presenting a north–south space-for-time substitution that capitalizes on the region's 600 km latitudinal span. We combine extensive geomatics data across the Taiga Plains with ground-based hydrometeorological measurements collected in the Scotty Creek basin, Northwest Territories, Canada, which is located in the medial latitudes of the Taiga Plains and is undergoing rapid landscape change. These data are used to inform a new conceptual framework of landscape evolution that accounts for the observed patterns of permafrost thaw-induced land cover change and provides a basis for predicting future changes. Permafrost thaw-induced changes in hydrology promote partial drainage and drying of collapse scar wetlands, leading to areas of afforestation forming treed wetlands without underlying permafrost. Across the north–south latitudinal gradient spanning the Taiga Plains, relatively undisturbed forested plateau–wetland complexes dominate the region's higher latitudes, forest–wetland patchwork are most prevalent at the medial latitudes, and forested peatlands are increasingly present across lower latitudes. This trend reflects the progression of wetland transition occurring locally in the plateau–wetland complexes of the Scotty Creek basin and informs our understanding of the ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Northwest Territories permafrost taiga Taiga plains Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Northwest Territories Canada Scotty Creek ENVELOPE(-121.561,-121.561,61.436,61.436) Hydrology and Earth System Sciences 25 6 3301 3317 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Technology T Environmental technology. Sanitary engineering TD1-1066 Geography. Anthropology. Recreation G Environmental sciences GE1-350 |
spellingShingle |
Technology T Environmental technology. Sanitary engineering TD1-1066 Geography. Anthropology. Recreation G Environmental sciences GE1-350 O. Carpino K. Haynes R. Connon J. Craig É. Devoie W. Quinton Long-term climate-influenced land cover change in discontinuous permafrost peatland complexes |
topic_facet |
Technology T Environmental technology. Sanitary engineering TD1-1066 Geography. Anthropology. Recreation G Environmental sciences GE1-350 |
description |
The discontinuous permafrost zone is undergoing rapid transformation as a result of unprecedented permafrost thaw brought on by circumpolar climate warming. Rapid warming over recent decades has significantly decreased the area underlain by permafrost in peatland complexes. It has catalysed extensive landscape transitions in the Taiga Plains of northwestern Canada, transforming forest-dominated landscapes to those that are wetland dominated. However, the advanced stages of this landscape transition, and the hydrological and thermal mechanisms and feedbacks governing these environments, are unclear. This study explores the current trajectory of land cover change across a 300 000 km 2 region of northwestern Canada's discontinuous permafrost zone by presenting a north–south space-for-time substitution that capitalizes on the region's 600 km latitudinal span. We combine extensive geomatics data across the Taiga Plains with ground-based hydrometeorological measurements collected in the Scotty Creek basin, Northwest Territories, Canada, which is located in the medial latitudes of the Taiga Plains and is undergoing rapid landscape change. These data are used to inform a new conceptual framework of landscape evolution that accounts for the observed patterns of permafrost thaw-induced land cover change and provides a basis for predicting future changes. Permafrost thaw-induced changes in hydrology promote partial drainage and drying of collapse scar wetlands, leading to areas of afforestation forming treed wetlands without underlying permafrost. Across the north–south latitudinal gradient spanning the Taiga Plains, relatively undisturbed forested plateau–wetland complexes dominate the region's higher latitudes, forest–wetland patchwork are most prevalent at the medial latitudes, and forested peatlands are increasingly present across lower latitudes. This trend reflects the progression of wetland transition occurring locally in the plateau–wetland complexes of the Scotty Creek basin and informs our understanding of the ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
O. Carpino K. Haynes R. Connon J. Craig É. Devoie W. Quinton |
author_facet |
O. Carpino K. Haynes R. Connon J. Craig É. Devoie W. Quinton |
author_sort |
O. Carpino |
title |
Long-term climate-influenced land cover change in discontinuous permafrost peatland complexes |
title_short |
Long-term climate-influenced land cover change in discontinuous permafrost peatland complexes |
title_full |
Long-term climate-influenced land cover change in discontinuous permafrost peatland complexes |
title_fullStr |
Long-term climate-influenced land cover change in discontinuous permafrost peatland complexes |
title_full_unstemmed |
Long-term climate-influenced land cover change in discontinuous permafrost peatland complexes |
title_sort |
long-term climate-influenced land cover change in discontinuous permafrost peatland complexes |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3301-2021 https://doaj.org/article/ee430f6cd2704c1382e373acbc23a021 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-121.561,-121.561,61.436,61.436) |
geographic |
Northwest Territories Canada Scotty Creek |
geographic_facet |
Northwest Territories Canada Scotty Creek |
genre |
Northwest Territories permafrost taiga Taiga plains |
genre_facet |
Northwest Territories permafrost taiga Taiga plains |
op_source |
Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, Vol 25, Pp 3301-3317 (2021) |
op_relation |
https://hess.copernicus.org/articles/25/3301/2021/hess-25-3301-2021.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1027-5606 https://doaj.org/toc/1607-7938 doi:10.5194/hess-25-3301-2021 1027-5606 1607-7938 https://doaj.org/article/ee430f6cd2704c1382e373acbc23a021 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3301-2021 |
container_title |
Hydrology and Earth System Sciences |
container_volume |
25 |
container_issue |
6 |
container_start_page |
3301 |
op_container_end_page |
3317 |
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1766150629085937664 |