CGRG Bibliography of Canadian Geomorphology
Search Results
Author : Dirzowsky, R.
Date : 2001.
Title : Sediment tracing and floodplain history of the Fraser River near Moose Lake, British Columbia.
Publication : The Canadian Association of Geographers/l'association Canadienne des Géographes. 2001 Annual Meeting. 50th Anniversary of the CAG Jointly Organised by McGill University, Concordia University and Université de Montréal Tuesday May 29 – Sunday June 3, 2001
Issue :
Page(s) :
Abstract
At Moose Lake in east-central British Columbia, the Fraser River has built a 4-5 km long delta, the surface of which records river development and floodplain evolution through the Holocene. Sediments that are delivered to the floodplain and to Moose Lake originate in one of two distinct source areas feeding the uppermost Fraser and Moose rivers. While the former is characterized by clastic sedimentary and meta-sedimentary bedrock and yields silicic mineral sediments, the latter is dominated by carbonate lithologies and sediment yields. In this study floodplain history is reconstructed from surface morphology and sub-surface stratigraphy based on vibracores. Radiocarbon dates help define early Holocene and Neoglacial floodplain sectors, and constrain the development of several prominent pointbars and paleochannels. Clast-lithology and fine-fraction elemental composition of past and present channel materials are used to infer relative contributions from the two source areas. Because the Moose River basin is more sensitive to precipitation and glacier fluctuations, its contribution is interpretable in terms of hydro-climate. The patterns observed reflect long-term Holocene climatic deterioration and are consistent with known regional glacier advances during the Neoglacial. The tracing techniques tested here plus knowledge of upstream geomorphic history can help clarify the more continuous Moose Lake sedimentary record.
Bibliography of Canadian Geomorphology