New 2012 Precipitation Frequency Estimation Analysis for Alaska: Musings on Data Used and the Final Product

INE/AUTC 13.1

Using Snow Fences to Augment Fresh Water Supplies in Shallow Arctic Lakes

This project was funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) to address environmental research questions specifically related to Alaska’s oil and gas natural resources development. The focus of this project was on the environmental issues associated with allocation of water resources for construction of ice roads and ice pads. Earlier NETL projects showed that oil and gas exploration activities in the U.S. Arctic require large amounts of water for ice road and ice pad construction. Traditionally, lakes have been the source of freshwater for this purpose. The distinctive hydrological regime of northern lakes, caused by the presence of ice cover and permafrost, exerts influence on lake water availability in winter. Lakes are covered with ice from October to June, and there is often no water recharge of lakes until snowmelt in early June. After snowmelt, water volumes in the lakes decrease throughout the summer, when water loss due to evaporation is considerably greater than water gained from rainfall. This balance switches in August, when air temperature drops, evaporation decreases, and rain (or snow) is more likely to occur. Some of the summer surface storage deficit in the active layer and surface water bodies (lakes, ponds, wetlands) is recharged during this time. However, if the surface storage deficit is not replenished (for example, precipitation in the fall is low and near‐surface soils are dry), lake recharge is directly affected, and water availability for the following winter is reduced. In this study, we used snow fences to augment fresh water supplies in shallow arctic lakes despite unfavorable natural conditions. We implemented snow‐control practices to enhance snowdrift accumulation (greater snow water equivalent), which led to increased meltwater production and an extended melting season that resulted in lake recharge despite low precipitation during the years of the experiment. For three years (2009, 2010, and 2011), we selected and monitored two lakes with similar hydrological regimes. Both lakes are located 30 miles south of Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, near Franklin Bluffs. One is an experimental lake, where we installed a snow fence; the other is a control lake, where the natural regime was preserved. The general approach was to compare the hydrologic response of the lake to the snowdrift during the summers of 2010 and 2011 against the “baseline” conditions in 2009. Highlights of the project included new data on snow transport rates on the Alaska North Slope, an evaluation of the experimental lake’s hydrological response to snowdrift melt, and cost assessment of snowdrift‐generated water. High snow transport rates (0.49 kg/s/m) ensured that the snowdrift reached its equilibrium profile by winter's end. Generally, natural snowpack disappeared by the beginning of June in this area. In contrast, snow in the drift lasted through early July, supplying the experimental lake with snowmelt when water in other tundra lakes was decreasing. The experimental lake retained elevated water levels during the entire open‐water season. Comparison of lake water volumes during the experiment against the baseline year showed that, by the end of summer, the drift generated by the snow fence had increased lake water volume by at least 21–29%. We estimated water cost at 1.9 cents per gallon during the first year and 0.8 cents per gallon during the second year. This estimate depends on the cost of snow fence construction in remote arctic locations, which we assumed to be at $7.66 per square foot of snow fence frontal area. The snow fence technique was effective in augmenting the supply of lake water during summers 2010 and 2011 despite low rainfall during both summers. Snow fences are a simple, yet an effective, way to replenish tundra lakes with freshwater and increase water availability in winter. This research project was synergetic with the NETL project, “North Slope Decision Support System (NSDSS) for Water Resources Planning and Management.” The results of these projects were implemented in the NSDSS model and added to the annual water budget. This implementation allows one to account for snowdrift contributions during ice road planning with the NSDSS and assists with mitigating those risks associated with potentially unfavorable climate and hydrological conditions (that is, surface storage deficit and/or low precipitation).Disclaimer 3 Acknowledgments 4 Abstract 5 Executive Summary 6 Report Details 9 Experimental methods 10 Location of the experimental site 10 Land use permits 11 Hydrological and meteorological data collection 11 Snow fence design and location 12 Results and discussion 16 Snow transport and drift growth 16 Snowdrift melt 18 Precipitation and evaporation 20 Hydrological response of the lake 23 Water cost 27 North Slope Decision Support System 27 Conclusions 28 Graphical Material List 29 References 30 List of Acronyms and Abbreviations 3

Proceedings 19th International Northern Research Basins Symposium and Workshop Southcentral Alaska, USA – August 11–17, 2013

Preface .......................................................... i Symposium Organizing Committee ................................................ iii List of Participants ........................................................... ix Symposium Papers ............................................................................................1 Hydrologic Connectivity and Dissolved Organic Carbon Fluxes in Low-Gradient High Arctic Wetland Ponds, Polar Bear Pass, Bathurst Island, Canada Abnizova, A., Young, K.L., and Lafrenière, M.J. ........................................................3 Spatial and Temporal Variation in the Spring Freshet of Major Circumpolar Arctic River Systems: A CROCWR Component Ahmed, R., Prowse, T.D., Dibike, Y.B., and Bonsal, B.R. ...............................................15 The Features of Suspended Sediment Yield in Rivers in Kamchatka, Far East Russia Alekseevsky, N.I., and Kuksina, L.V. ...........................................................................25 Kenai Peninsula Precipitation and Air Temperature Trend Analysis Bauret, S., and Stuefer, S.L. ........................................................................................35 An Analysis of Spatial and Temporal Trends and Patterns in Western Canadian Runoff: A CROCWR Component Bawden, A.J., Burn, D.H., and Prowse, T.D. ................................................................45 Historical Changes and Future Projections of Extreme Hydroclimate Events in Interior Alaska Watersheds Bennett, K.E., Cannon, A., and Hinzman, L. ...............................................................57 Linking North Slope Climate, Hydrology, and Fish Migration Betts, E.D., and Kane, D.L. .........................................................................................69 Input of Dissolved Organic Carbon for Typical Lakes in Tundra Based on Field Data of the Expedition Lena – 2012 Bobrova, O., Fedorova, I., Chetverova, A., Runkle, B., and Potapova, T. ...................77 Predicting Snow Density Bruland, O., Færevåg, Å., Steinsland, I., and Sand, K. ............................................83 Arctic Snow Distribution Patterns at the Watershed Scale Homan, J.W., and Kane, D.L. ....................................................................................95 Modeling Groundwater Upwelling as a Control on River Ice Thickness Jones, C., Kielland, K., and Hinzman, L. .......................................................107 Challenges of Precipitation Data Collection in Alaska Kane, D.L., and Stuefer, S.L. ............................................................................. 117 Water Temperature Variations in Two Finnish Lakes (Kallavesi and Inari) in 1981–2010 Korhonen, J. ..........................................................................................................127 Spatiotemporal Trends in Climatic Variables Affecting Streamflow Across Western Canada from 1950–2010: A CROCWR Component Linton, H., Prowse, T., Dibike, Y., and Bonsal, B. ......................................................137 Scaling Runoff from Large to Small Catchments – Comparison of Theoretical Results with Measurements Marchand, W.D., and Vaskinn, K. ................................................................................149 Sediment Transport to the Kangerlussuaq Fjord, West Greenland Mikkelsen, A., and Hasholt, B. ....................................................................................157 Synoptic Climatological Characteristics Associated with Water Availability in Western Canada: A CROCWR Component Newton, B.W., Prowse, T.D., and Bonsal, B.R. ..........................................................167 Winter Streamflow Generation in a Subarctic Precambrian Shield Catchment Spence, C., Kokelj, S.A., Kokelj, S.V., and Hedstrom, N. ...........................................179 Water Balance Calculation over Surface Water Storage in the Dry Interior Climate of the Athabasca River Region in Western Canada: A CROCWR Component Walker, G.S., Prowse, T.D., Dibike, Y.B., and Bonsal, B.R. ..........................................189 Forest Disturbance Effects on Snow and Water Yield in South-Central British Columbia Winkler, R., Spittlehouse, D., Boon, S., and Zimonick, B. .........................................201 Ecohydrology of Boreal Forests: The Role of Water Content Young (formerly Cable), J.M., and Bolton, W.R. ........................................................213 Seasonal Stream Regimes and Water Budgets of Hillslope Catchments, Polar Bear Pass and Cape Bounty, Nunavut Young, K.L., Lafrenière, M.J., Lamoureux, S., Abnizova, A., and Miller, E.A. ............217 Symposium Abstracts ................................................................................................231 River Flow Transformation Processes in the Lena River Delta, Russia Alekseevsky, N.I., Aibulatov, D.N., Kuksina, L.V., and Chetverova, A.A. ..................233 Hydrological Analysis of Catchments in the National Petroleum Reserve – Alaska Prior to Petroleum Development Arp, C.D., and Whitman, M. ......................................................................................234 Macrodispersion of Groundwater Contaminants in Discontinuous Permafrost Barnes, M.L., and Barnes, D.L. ................................................................................235 Arctic Water Change: Limitations and Opportunities for Its Detection and Predictability Destouni, G. ..............................................................................................................236 Response of Water Bodies in the Northwest Part of Russia to Climate Changes and Anthropogenic Impacts Filatov, N.N., Efremova, T.V., Georgiev, A.P., Nazarova, L.E., Pal’shin, N.I., and Rukhovets, L.A. ......................................................................................................237 The Interaction of Atmospheric, Hydrologic, Geomorphic, and Ecosystem Processes on the Arctic Coastal Plain Hinzman, L.D., Wilson, C.J., Rowland, J.C., Hubbard, S.S., Torn, M.S., Riley, W.J., Wullschleger, S.D., Graham, D.E., Liang, L., Norby, R.J., Thornton, P.E., and Rogers, A. ...............................................................................................238 Sensitivity of Yukon Hydrologic Response to Climate Warming: A Case Study for Community and Sectoral Climate Change Adaptation Janowicz, J.R., Pomeroy, J.W., and Carey, S. ..........................................................240 Thermokarst Lake Change in Western Siberia: From Spatiotemporal Landscape Dynamics to Hydrological Reflections Karlsson, J.M., Lyon, S.W., and Destouni, G. ............................................................241 An Assessment of Suspended Sediment Transport in Arctic Alaska Rivers Lamb, E., Toniolo, H., Kane, D., and Schnabel, W. ....................................................242 Greenland Freshwater Runoff. Part I: A Runoff Routing Model for Glaciated and Nonglaciated Landscapes (HydroFlow) Liston, G.E., and Mernild, S.H. .................................................................................243 Interactions between Vegetation, Snow, and Permafrost Active Layer Marsh, P., Shi, X., Endrizzi, S., Baltzer, J., and Lantz, T. ...........................................244 Greenland Freshwater Runoff. Part II: Distribution and Trends, 1960–2010 Mernild, S.H., and Liston, G.E. ..................................................................................245 Climatic Redistribution of Canada’s Western Water Resources (CROCWR) Prowse, T.D., Bonsal, B.R., Burn, D.H., Dibike, Y.B., Edwards, T., Ahmed, R., Bawden, A.J., Linton, H.C., Newton, B.W., and Walker, G.S. ................................................246 Permafrost Thaw Induced Changes to Surface Water Systems: Implications for Streamflow Quinton, W.L., and Baltzer, J.L. ................................................................................247 The Ecohydrology of Thawing Permafrost Plateaus Quinton, W.L., and Baltzer, J.L. ................................................................................248 Meteorology for Hydropower Production Scheduling Sand, K., and Nordeng, T.E. .....................................................................................249 Delineation of Snow Patterns in Northern Alaska Wagner, A.M., Hiemstra, C.A., and Sturm, M. ............................................................250 Winter Low Flow in the Mackenzie River Basin Woo, M., and Thorne, R. ............................................................................................25

River Ice Measurements for Transportation Safety in Rural Communities

This project is relevant to the cold areas of Federal Region 10, where transportation routes occur on the frozen surfaces of lakes and rivers for three to four months each year Transportation safety on ice roads is a complex problem that involves people, vehicles, river ice, and weather conditions. While all these factors must be considered, this study focused on river ice measurements for ice road construction and transportation safety. Ice thickness measurements are critical in determining the bearing capacity of river ice cover and assessing the risk of breakthrough on ice roads. The project team collaborated with the city of Tanana, a rural Alaska community that builds a winter ice road across the Yukon River to connect to the state road system.US Department of Transportation Pacific Northwest Transportation Consortium University of Alaska Fairbank

A Pulse of Mercury and Major Ions in Snowmelt Runoff from a Small Arctic Alaska Watershed

Atmospheric mercury (Hg) is deposited to Polar Regions during springtime atmospheric mercury depletion events (AMDEs) that require halogens and snow or ice surfaces. The fate of this Hg during and following snowmelt is largely unknown. We measured Hg, major ions, and stable water isotopes from the snowpack through the entire spring melt runoff period for two years. Our small (2.5 ha) watershed is near Barrow (now Utqiaġvik), Alaska. We measured discharge, made 10 000 snow depths, and collected over 100 samples of snow and meltwater for chemical analysis in 2008 and 2009 from the watershed snowpack and ephemeral stream channel. Results show an “ionic pulse” of mercury and major ions in runoff during both snowmelt seasons, but major ion and Hg runoff concentrations were roughly 50% higher in 2008 than in 2009. Though total discharge as a percent of total watershed snowpack water equivalent prior to the melt was similar in both years (36% in 2008 melt runoff and 34% in 2009), it is possible that record low precipitation in the summer of 2007 led to the higher major ion and Hg concentrations in 2008 melt runoff. Total dissolved Hg meltwater runoff of 14.3 (± 0.7) mg/ha in 2008 and 8.1 (± 0.4) mg/ha in 2009 is five to seven times higher than that reported from other arctic watersheds. We calculate 78% of snowpack Hg was exported with snowmelt runoff in 2008 and 41% in 2009. Our results suggest AMDE Hg complexed with Cl^– or Br^– may be less likely to be photochemically reduced and re-emitted to the atmosphere prior to snowmelt, and we estimate that roughly 25% of the Hg in snowmelt is attributable to AMDEs. Projected Arctic warming, with more open sea ice leads providing halogen sources that promote AMDEs, may provide enhanced Hg deposition, reduced Hg emission and, ultimately, an increase in snowpack and snowmelt runoff Hg concentrations