ABSTRACT: Effects of glaciation upon karst aquifers in Canada

CGRG Bibliography of Canadian Geomorphology
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Abstract

In Canada there are 570,000 sq km of limestone and marble outcrop, 600,000 sq km of dolomite and 80,000 sq km of sulfate rocks. In addition, halite subcrops beneath 500,000 sq km of the central Prairie region and interacts with modern groundwater circulation to a varying extent. More than 90% of the total outcrop-subcrop has been repeatedly glaciated. The most recent time terminated 13,000-5000 yr B.P. in certain areas.Carbonate terrains still partly buried by glacier ice may be inspected in the Rocky Mountains. Nine distinct effects of glacial action on the propagation and efficiency of karst aquifers are recognized. Destructive effects include erasure, dissection, infilling and injection. Bedrock solution may be inhibited during non-glacial periods by a cover of glacial drift rich in carbonate clasts. Glacial burial may also preserve an aquifer and enhance its storage characteristics. Raising the hydrostatic head or steepening hydraulic gradients may stimulate aquifer expansion.

Bibliography of Canadian Geomorphology