The Effect of Increasing Active Layer Depth on Changes in the Water Budget in the Cryolithozone

Abstract

Under the influence of perennial dynamics of soil thawing depth, the upper layer of permafrost periodically thaws and becomes a part of the soil profile in the permafrost zone. In this case, the horizon, which is either frozen or thawed and has a thickness of several tens of centimeters, displays an elevated ice content (moisture). This horizon between the lower boundary of the active layer and the permafrost is named a protective layer or a transient permafrost layer and functions as a buffer that hinders thawing of the ice complex with its high ice content. The study of moisture using soil-regime methods and budget calculations showed that the protective layer of permafrost in sandy and loamy soils (at the depth of 1.5–5 m) contains from 25 to 60 mm (on average, 30 mm) of water in each 10-cm-thick layer of frozen soils under different types of forests in Central Yakutia. An increase in the seasonal thawing depth of permafrost-affected soils under conditions of global climate warming and anthropogenic impacts (forest fires, destruction of forest cover, etc.) causes degradation of the protective layer. The purpose of this article is to show the effect of increasing seasonal thawing depth of permafrost-affected soils on changes in the water content and water budget in permafrost areas because of the release of moisture stored in the protective layer in the context of global climate change. It was found that with an increase in the seasonal thawing depth, the protective layer should release a significant amount of water preserved in permafrost, which may change the water budget of permafrost territories. As calculations show, with an increase in the soil seasonal thawing depth by 20–30 cm on the interfluve areas, the volume of water entering the basins of nearby thermokarst depressions (alases) and rivers from frozen soils may reach 60 000–90 000 m3/km2. The obtained results can be used in modeling and predicting the dynamics of permafrost environments under the global climate change.