Quantitative assessment of the hydraulic role of subglaciofluvial interbeds in promoting deposition of deformation till (Northern Till,Ontario)

The Northern Till is a thick (>65 m) deformation till underlying some 7500 km² of Southern Ontario, Canada including the Peterborough Drumlin Field. It was deposited below the Lake Ontario ice stream of the Laurentide Ice Sheet. The till rests on glaciotectonized aquifer sediments and consists of multiple beds of till up to 6 m thick. These are separated by boulder lags, sometimes in the form of striated pavements, with thin (<30 cm) interbeds of poorly sorted waterlaid sand. The composite till stratigraphy indicates ‘punctuated aggradation’ where the subglacial bed was built up incrementally by the repeated ‘immobilization’ of deforming overpressured till layers. Boulders and sands indicate pauses in subglacial aggradation marked by sluggish sheet flows of water that reworked the top of the underlying till. Interbeds are laterally extensive and correlated using downhole electrical conductivity, core recovery and natural gamma data. A 3-D finite element model (FEFLOW) using data from 200 cored and geophysically logged boreholes, and a large digital water well dataset of 3400 individual records shows that the till functions as a ‘leaky aquitard’ as a consequence of water flow through interbeds. It is proposed that interbeds played a similar role in the subglacial hydraulic system below the Laurentide Ice Sheet by allowing drainage of excess porewater pressures in deforming sediment and promoting deposition of till. This is in agreement with theoretical studies of deforming bed dynamics and observations at modern glaciers where porewater in the deforming layer is discharged into underlying aquifers. In this way, the presence of interbeds may be fundamental in retarding downglacier transport of deforming bed material thereby promoting the build-up of thick subglacial till successions.     

Groundwater flow through Pleistocene glacial deposits in the rapidly urbanizing Rouge River–Highland Creek watershed,City of Scarborough,southern Ontario,Canada

The city of Scarborough lies on the eastern margin of the Greater Toronto Area of southern Ontario, Canada, along the northern coastline of Lake Ontario. The City has a population of 500,000 and is presently one of the fastest growing communities in Canada. The City is expanding northwards onto rural land on the south slope of the large Pleistocene glacial Oak Ridges Moraine system. The moraine system is underlain by a thick (150 m) succession of tills, sands and gravels and is a regionally-significant recharge area for three principle aquifer systems that discharge to numerous watercourses that flow to Lake Ontario. Protection of deeper aquifers from surface-generated urban contaminants is a particular concern. A groundwater flow model using Visual MODFLOW was developed for the 350-km² Rouge River–Highland Creek (RRHC) drainage basin using an extensive GIS-based collection of subsurface geological, geophysical and hydrogeological data, maps of land use and surficial geology. The RRHC model was calibrated against point water level data, known potentiometric surfaces of the principal aquifers and baseflow measurements from streamflow gauging stations and determined to be within acceptable limits. Water balance calculations indicate that 70% of the basin recharge (106,000 m³/day) enters the Upper Aquifer along the crest and immediate flanks of the Oak Ridges Moraine. To the south, Upper Aquifer water moving through fractured till aquitards accounts for more than 75% of recharge to deeper aquifers. Water quality data confirm previous observations that urban- and rural-sourced contaminants (chlorides and nitrates) present in Upper Aquifer waters are moving rapidly into deeper aquifers. Some 83% of total RRHC recharge water is ultimately discharged as baseflow to creeks draining to Lake Ontario; the remainder discharges to springs and along eroding lakeshore bluffs. Model results demonstrate that deeper aquifers are poorly protected from urban contaminants and that long-term protection of ground and surface water quality has to be a priority of municipal planners if the resource is not to be severely degraded. Electronic Publication     

Genesis and clay mineralogy of soils on different geomorphic surfaces in Mahan-Joupar area, central Iran

Soil genesis and clay mineralogy studies play an important role in sustainable soil and agriculture management. Soil properties are highly affected by geomorphic position. To study the physicochemical soil properties and clay mineralogy related to geomorphic surfaces, 12 representative pedons on different landforms in the Mahan-Joupar area, central Iran, were selected. Soil moisture and temperature regimes of the area were aridic and mesic, respectively. Rock and mantled pediments, alluvial fan, inselberg, plain, and transitional surfaces were among the different landforms studied. Alluvial fan was also divided into stable and unstable surfaces according to detailed field studies. Argillic horizon found in stable alluvial fan surfaces was attributed to the presence of a more humid paleoclimate in the history of the area. Coating of calcite on clay films observed by SEM showed that clay was illuviated in more humid periods of the past and then followed by calcium carbonate illuviation during arid climates. Smectite, kaolinite, chlorite, illite, and palygorskite clay minerals were identified by X-ray and SEM observations. Finally, a close relationship between the geomorphology and soil genesis and clay mineralogy was found in the area.     

Impacts of European settlement (1840–present) in a Great Lake watershed and lagoon: Frenchman’s Bay, Lake Ontario, Canada

The northern shore of Lake Ontario is one of the longest settled parts of Canada beginning around 1795. Accelerated settlement and deforestation after 1840 resulted in massive soil loss from easily-eroded Pleistocene glacial landscapes and the siltation of creeks and lagoons. Channel capacity was reduced but river flow was enhanced by diminished infiltration resulting in straightening of meandering channels, accelerated erosion of stream banks, increased incidence of downstream flooding and large influxes of mud to Lake Ontario. Conservation measures after World War II were successful but rapid urban sprawl after 1970 hardened watersheds and badly impacted the quality and quantity of surface and ground waters flowing to Lake Ontario. The Frenchman’s Bay watershed (27 km²) 50 km east of Toronto is one of the country’s most urbanized (pop: 100,000; 76 % urban cover) and is crossed by Canada’s busiest highway (Highway 401). The watershed drains to Lake Ontario through a coastal lagoon (Frenchman’s Bay) in which pre-settlement postglacial carbonate is abruptly overlain by a ‘European settlement’ mud layer rich in weed pollen and organic debris; the uppermost ‘urban’ part of this deposit shows elevated level of metals and other contaminants. This layer records soil loss after 1840 and more recently, the influx of contaminated urban waters and sediment. Some 7,600 tonnes of road salt have been applied to the lagoon watershed each year producing spikes of brackish surface runoff during winter thaws. Some 50 % of the total salt applied to the entire watershed is conveyed directly to Frenchman’s Bay Lagoon via surface runoff; the rest enters the groundwater system resulting in year-round brackish baseflow to creeks. Chloride continues to be stored in underlying aquifers such that the system has yet to reach a steady-state discharge. Future salinity of baseflow reaching the lagoon can be expected to increase by about 40 %. Rapid migration of contaminated groundwater is facilitated by the widespread presence of thick (<8 m) coarse-grained and heterogeneous fill materials of the built landscape. The watershed is experiencing ongoing changes in land use as urban infilling proceeds. The aquatic ecology of inflowing creeks to the lagoon has been greatly impacted resulting in major loss of wetlands and submergent vegetation and distinct changes in the structure of fish populations. This is the most detailed study of an urban watershed in Canada; lack of knowledge elsewhere is a constraint on the design and testing of mitigation measures and is a major impediment to assessing the impact of ongoing climate change on urban water resources, and the effects of urban runoff on Great Lakes water quality.