Recovery of Active Layer following Vehicle Disturbance Near Barrow, Alaska
Dustin R. Bronson, Craig E. Tweedie, Steven P. Rewa, Robert D. Hollister, Patrick J. WebberIntroduction:
Fig. 1 - Graph of Thaw Depth Following Disturbance 1
- Due to growing industry and subsistence hunting, off-road vehicle use over the past fifty years has increased exponentially in northern Alaska. While many studies have examined the initial impacts of vehicles on tundra, less attention has been given to long term recovery.
- Near Barrow there is a long history of off road vehicle (ORV) use relative to the Arctic settlements. These offer a range of abandoned tracks made by a variety of ORV's suitable for assessment of long term recovery.
- All test sites are over twenty years old. While primary production and plant cover has been shown to return to normal levels within six to ten years, active layer thickness is slow to rebound, and residual affects may remain for many years2.
- This study investigates active layer seasonal dynamics of grided-plots located on abandoned vehicle tracks made by Rolligons and M-29 Weasels in the 1960's and 1970's near Barrow (Fig 1).
- Beginning
- Introduction
- Methods
- Results
- Conclusion
- References