Arctic Spring Systems Driven by Permafrost Aggradation

Abstract

Groundwater springs in permafrost regions provide pathways for solutes and dissolved gases to escape from sub-permafrost groundwater systems, which otherwise are completely isolated from the surface environment and atmosphere. Yet, fundamental questions as to the mechanisms driving groundwater flow to the surface remain unsolved. In this study, basal permafrost aggradation is explored as a mechanism for generating groundwater flow and driving groundwater spring systems. We employ process-based numerical modeling to test the hypothesis of permafrost-aggradation-driven spring systems in a range of environmental settings. The model results show that permafrost aggradation can generate spring flow on a multi-millennial timescale and with discharge rates up to a couple of liters per second. Permafrost aggradation deserves attention as a groundwater flow driving mechanism in areas of recent glacio-isostatic uplift and glacial retreat.