Development of a three-dimensional geological model, based on Quaternary chronology, geological mapping, and geophysical investigation, of a watershed in the discontinuous permafrost zone near Umiujaq (Nunavik, Canada)

Abstract

Among the few positive impacts of climate warming in cold regions, permafrost degradation can increase the availability of groundwater as a potential source of drinking water for northern communities. Near the Inuit community of Umiujaq in Nunavik, Canada, a watershed in a valley in the discontinuous permafrost zone was instrumented to monitor the impacts of climate change on permafrost and groundwater, and assess the groundwater availability and quality. Based on Quaternary chronology, knowledge of periglacial processes, and an investigation carried out in the valley (including mapping of Quaternary deposits and ice-rich permafrost distribution, drilling and sampling of deposits, and geophysical surveys), a three-dimensional (3D) geological model of the watershed was built into GoCAD to assess the hydrogeological context in this degrading permafrost environment. In total, six units were identified within the watershed including an upper aquifer in marine sediments, a lower aquifer at depth in glaciofluvial and glacial sediments, and the bedrock acting as a low-permeability boundary. An aquitard, made of frost-susceptible silty sand and discontinuously invaded by ice-rich permafrost, confines the lower aquifer. This 3D geological model clarifies the local stratigraphic architecture and geometries of Quaternary deposits, especially the stratigraphic relationship between the two aquifers, aquitard, and bedrock, and the extent of ice-rich permafrost within the watershed. It is the cornerstone to understand the groundwater dynamics within the watershed and to carry out numerical modelling of coupled groundwater flow and heat transfer processes to predict the impacts of climate change on groundwater resources in this degrading permafrost environment.