Gautier Davesne

Email adress : [email protected]

Title of the research

Spatio-temporal evolution of alpine sporadic permafrost on the Chic-Chocs Range, Gaspé Peninsula, Québec

Research proposal

In Southern Quebec, alpine permafrost is marginal and is restricted to the highest summits of the Chic-Chocs Mountains in the Gaspé Peninsula sector of the northern Appalachians. The existence of alpine permafrost in the Chics-Chocs Mountains was initially established by Gray and Brown (1979, 1981) by means of a multi-thermistor cable installed in a 29 m deep borehole drilled, in September 1977, on the plateau summit of mont Jacques Cartier (1268 m a.s.l .), the highest point in southern Quebec. With a 36-year long record for the geothermal regime at the mont Jacques Cartier site represents one of the longest permafrost-monitoring records in North America and is therefore of great interest to study the impact of climate change on permafrost evolution.

Despite considerable research efforts made since the late 1970’s, detail knowledge of physical structure and spatial-temporal evolution of the permafrost of the Chic-Chocs is still fragmental, in particular because data are restricted to the immediate surroundings of borehole location. In this study, the objective is to develop a quantitative and qualitative understanding of the interactions mechanisms (positive and negative feedbacks) between the environmental (e.g. soil, hydrology, vegetation, land surface, topography) and climatic factors (e.g. air temperature, snow cover, wind) which control permafrost evolution in space and time (aggradation, equilibrium or degradation). These researches are primordial to bear a comprehensive analysis of the permafrost responses to the past and current climate change in order to anticipate its probable degradation and its impacts on the periglacial environment of the Chic-Chocs plateaus.

Keywords
Alpine permafrost, climate change, periglacial environment, alpine geosystem, snow

Conference presentations

Davesne G. and Deline, P. (2012) Modalités d’enneigement et impacts thermiques du couvert de neige sur le  pergélisol des parois raides de l’Aiguille du Midi (3842 m d’alt., massif du Mont Blanc, France).  Université de Savoie, France, Réunion AAPS Mont Blanc, 19 mars 2012.

Conference posters

Davesne G. & D. Fortier (2011) Impact of snow cover on the sporadic distribution of permafrost in Chic-Chocs  Range:  mont Jacques-Cartier case study. Université du Québec à Montréal,  Montréal,  Canada, 41st  annual Arctic Workshop, March 2-4 2011.

Davesne G. & D. Fortier (2011) L’impact du couvert de neige sur la distribution pergélisol sporadique  dans le  massif  des Chic-Chocs: Etude de cas du mont Jacques-Cartier. Université Laval.  Quebec, Canada.  Annual symposium 2011, February 9-10, 2011.

Scientific reports

Fortier, D.; Veuille, S.; Sliger, M. et G. Davesne (2013) Techniques des conduites à Convection d’air. Rapport technique d’installation, de mise en place et de mesure pour l’équipement des conduits à convections d’air. Laboratoire de géomorphologie et de géotechnique des régions froides, Université de Montréal, 42 p.

Fortier, D. ; De Granpré, I. ; Davesne, G., Verpaelst et M. Sliger (2013) Impacts de l’écoulement souterrain sur la dégradation du pergélisol et la stabilité des routes construites sur remblai, Rapport d’étape 4 : Suivi des travaux de laboratoire sur la conductivité hydraulique. Laboratoire de géomorphologie et de géotechnique des régions froides, Université de Montréal, 36 p.

Affiliations

Centre for Northern Studies (CEN)
ArcticNet
Permafrost Young Researchers Network (PYRN)
Association of Polar Early Carrer Scientists (APECS)

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