@phdthesis{Lantuit2008,
  author    = {Lantuit, Hugues},
  title     = {The modification of arctic permafrost coastlines},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus-19732},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam},
  year      = {2008},
  abstract  = {The arctic region is undergoing the most rapid environmental change experienced on Earth, and the rate of change is expected to increase over the coming decades. Arctic coasts are particularly vulnerable because they lie at the interface between terrestrial systems dominated by permafrost and marine systems dominated by sea ice. An increased rise in sea level and degradation of sea-ice as predicted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in its most recent report and as observed recently in the Arctic will likely result in greater rates of coastal retreat. An increase in coastal erosion would result in dramatic increases in the volume of sediment, organic carbon and contaminants to the Arctic Ocean. These in turn have the potential to create dramatic changes in the geochemistry and biodiversity of the nearshore zone and affect the Arctic Ocean carbon cycle. To calculate estimates of organic carbon input from coastal erosion to the Arctic Ocean, current methods rely on the length of the coastline in the form of non self-similar line datasets. This thesis however emphasizes that using shorelines drawn at different scales can induce changes in the amount of sediment released by 30\% in some cases. It proposes a substitute method of computations of erosion based on areas instead of lengths (i.e. buffers instead of shoreline lengths) which can be easily implemented at the circum-Arctic scale. Using this method, variations in quantities of eroded sediment are, on average, 70\% less affected by scale changes and are therefore a more reliable method of calculation. Current estimates of coastal erosion rates in the Arctic are scarce and long-term datasets are a handful, which complicates assessment and prognosis of coastal processes, in particular the occurrence of coastal hazards. This thesis aims at filling the gap by providing the first long-term dataset (1951-2006) of coastal erosion on the Bykovsky Peninsula, North-East Siberia. This study shows that the coastline, which is made of ice-rich permafrost, retreated at a mean annual rate of 0.59 m/yr between 1951and 2006. Rates were highly variable: 97.0 \% of the rates observed were less than 2 m/yr and 81.6\% were less than 1m/yr. However, no significant trend in erosion could be recorded despite the study of five temporal subperiods within 1951-2006. The juxtaposition of wind records could not help to explain erosion records either and this thesis emphasizes the local controls on erosion, in particular the cryostratigraphy, the proximity of the Peninsula to the Lena River Delta freshwater plume and the local topographical constraints on swell development. On ice-rich coastal stretches of the Artic, the interaction of coastal dynamics and permafrost leads to the occurrence of spectacular "C-shaped" depressions termed retrogressive thaw slumps which can reach lengths of up to 650 m. On Herschel Island and at King Point (Yukon Coastal Plain, northern Canada), topographical, sedimentological and biogeochemical surveys were conducted to investigate the present and past activity of these landforms. In particular, undisturbed tundra areas were compared with zones of former slump activity, now stabilized and re-vegetated. This thesis shows that stabilized areas are drier and less prone to plant growth than undisturbed areas and feature fundamentally different geotechnical properties. Radiocarbon dating and topographical surveys indicated until up to 300 BP a likely period of dramatic slump activity on Herschel Island, similar to the one currently observed, which led to the creation of these surfaces. This thesis hypothesizes the occurrence of a ~250 years cycle of slump activity on the Herschel Island shoreline based on the surveyed topography and cryostratigraphy and anticipates higher frequency of slump activity in the future. The variety of processes described in this thesis highlights the changing nature of the intensity and frequency of physical processes acting upon the arctic coast. It also challenges current perceptions of the threats to existing industry and community infrastructure in the Arctic. The increasing presence of humans on Artic coasts coupled with the expected development of shipping will drive an increase in economical and industrial activity on these coasts which remains to be addressed scientifically.},
  language  = {en}
}
@phdthesis{WindirschWoiwode2024,
  author    = {Windirsch-Woiwode, Torben},
  title     = {Permafrost carbon stabilisation by recreating a herbivore-driven ecosystem},
  doi       = {10.25932/publishup-62424},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-624240},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam},
  pages     = {X, 104, A-57},
  year      = {2024},
  abstract  = {With Arctic ground as a huge and temperature-sensitive carbon reservoir, maintaining low ground temperatures and frozen conditions to prevent further carbon emissions that contrib-ute to global climate warming is a key element in humankind's fight to maintain habitable con-ditions on earth. Former studies showed that during the late Pleistocene, Arctic ground condi-tions were generally colder and more stable as the result of an ecosystem dominated by large herbivorous mammals and vast extents of graminoid vegetation - the mammoth steppe. Characterised by high plant productivity (grassland) and low ground insulation due to animal-caused compression and removal of snow, this ecosystem enabled deep permafrost aggrad-ation. Now, with tundra and shrub vegetation common in the terrestrial Arctic, these effects are not in place anymore. However, it appears to be possible to recreate this ecosystem local-ly by artificially increasing animal numbers, and hence keep Arctic ground cold to reduce or-ganic matter decomposition and carbon release into the atmosphere. By measuring thaw depth, total organic carbon and total nitrogen content, stable carbon iso-tope ratio, radiocarbon age, n-alkane and alcohol characteristics and assessing dominant vegetation types along grazing intensity transects in two contrasting Arctic areas, it was found that recreating conditions locally, similar to the mammoth steppe, seems to be possible. For permafrost-affected soil, it was shown that intensive grazing in direct comparison to non-grazed areas reduces active layer depth and leads to higher TOC contents in the active layer soil. For soil only frozen on top in winter, an increase of TOC with grazing intensity could not be found, most likely because of confounding factors such as vertical water and carbon movement, which is not possible with an impermeable layer in permafrost. In both areas, high animal activity led to a vegetation transformation towards species-poor graminoid-dominated landscapes with less shrubs. Lipid biomarker analysis revealed that, even though the available organic material is different between the study areas, in both permafrost-affected and sea-sonally frozen soils the organic material in sites affected by high animal activity was less de-composed than under less intensive grazing pressure. In conclusion, high animal activity af-fects decomposition processes in Arctic soils and the ground thermal regime, visible from reduced active layer depth in permafrost areas. Therefore, grazing management might be utilised to locally stabilise permafrost and reduce Arctic carbon emissions in the future, but is likely not scalable to the entire permafrost region.},
  language  = {en}
}
@phdthesis{Ramage2018,
  author    = {Ramage, Justine Lucille},
  title     = {Impact of Hillslope Thermokarst on the Nearshore Carbon Budget Along the Yukon Coast, Canada},
  doi       = {10.25932/publishup-42186},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-421867},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam},
  pages     = {xvii, 103},
  year      = {2018},
  abstract  = {In ice-rich permafrost regions, changes in the permafrost thermal regime cause surface disturbances. These changes are amplified by the increase in air temperatures recorded in the Arctic in the past decades. Thermokarst is a process that leads to surface subsidence and formation of characteristic landforms following thawing of ice-rich permafrost or melting of massive ice. Thermokarst is widespread on hillslopes and the number of associated landforms is increasing in the Arctic. Through this process large amounts of material are eroded and transported to the sea or accumulate along hillslopes. While hillslope thermokarst modifies terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, there is limited understanding of its environmental impact at a regional scale. In this thesis we quantify the environmental impacts of hillslope thermokarst on the valley and nearshore ecosystems along the Yukon Coast, Canada. Using supervised machine learning, we identified geomorphic factors that favour the development of coastal retrogressive thaw slump (RTS), one of the most dynamic hillslope thermokarst landform. Coastal geomorphology and ground ice type and content play a major role in RTS occurrence. Using aerial photographs and satellite imagery, we traced the evolution of RTSs between 1952 and 2011. During this time, the number and areal coverage of RTSs increased by 73\%. RTSs eroded and partly released to the nearshore zone organic carbon contained in millions of cubic meters of material. Our results show that 56\% of the RTSs identified along the coast in 2011 have eroded 16.6 × 10^6 m3 of material; a large part (45\%) was transported alongshore due to coastal processes. Moreover, we show that RTSs are a major contributor to the carbon budget in the nearshore ecosystem: 17\% of the coastal RTSs identified in 2011 contributed annually up to 0.6\% of the organic carbon released by coastal retreat along the Yukon Coast. To assess the impact of hillslope thermokarst on the terrestrial ecosystem, we measured the spatial distribution of soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN) along hillslopes in three Arctic valleys. We highlight the high spatial variability in the distribution of SOC and TN in the valleys. This distribution is caused by complex soil processes occurring along the hillslopes. Hillslope thermokarst impacts the degradation of organic matter and affects the storage of SOC and TN.},
  language  = {de}
}
@phdthesis{Weege2017,
  author    = {Weege, Stefanie},
  title     = {Climatic drivers of retrogressive thaw slump activity and resulting sediment and carbon release to the nearshore zone of Herschel Island, Yukon Territory, Canada},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-397947},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam},
  pages     = {163},
  year      = {2017},
  abstract  = {The Yukon Coast in Canada is an ice-rich permafrost coast and highly sensitive to changing environmental conditions. Retrogressive thaw slumps are a common thermoerosion feature along this coast, and develop through the thawing of exposed ice-rich permafrost on slopes and removal of accumulating debris. They contribute large amounts of sediment, including organic carbon and nitrogen, to the nearshore zone. The objective of this study was to 1) identify the climatic and geomorphological drivers of sediment-meltwater release, 2) quantify the amount of released meltwater, sediment, organic carbon and nitrogen, and 3) project the evolution of sediment-meltwater release of retrogressive thaw slumps in a changing future climate. The analysis is based on data collected over 18 days in July 2013 and 18 days in August 2012. A cut-throat flume was set up in the main sediment-meltwater channel of the largest retrogressive thaw slump on Herschel Island. In addition, two weather stations, one on top of the undisturbed tundra and one on the slump floor, measured incoming solar radiation, air temperature, wind speed and precipitation. The discharge volume eroding from the ice-rich permafrost and retreating snowbanks was measured and compared to the meteorological data collected in real time with a resolution of one minute. The results show that the release of sediment-meltwater from thawing of the ice-rich permafrost headwall is strongly related to snowmelt, incoming solar radiation and air temperature. Snowmelt led to seasonal differences, especially due to the additional contribution of water to the eroding sediment-meltwater from headwall ablation, lead to dilution of the sediment-meltwater composition. Incoming solar radiation and air temperature were the main drivers for diurnal and inter-diurnal fluctuations. In July (2013), the retrogressive thaw slump released about 25 000 m³ of sediment-meltwater, containing 225 kg dissolved organic carbon and 2050 t of sediment, which in turn included 33 t organic carbon, and 4 t total nitrogen. In August (2012), just 15 600 m³ of sediment-meltwater was released, since there was no additional contribution from snowmelt. However, even without the additional dilution, 281 kg dissolved organic carbon was released. The sediment concentration was twice as high as in July, with sediment contents of up to 457 g l-1 and 3058 t of sediment, including 53 t organic carbon and 5 t nitrogen, being released. In addition, the data from the 36 days of observations from Slump D were upscaled to cover the main summer season of 1 July to 31 August (62 days) and to include all 229 active retrogressive thaw slumps along the Yukon Coast. In total, all retrogressive thaw slumps along the Yukon Coast contribute a minimum of 1.4 Mio. m³ sediment-meltwater each thawing season, containing a minimum of 172 000 t sediment with 3119 t organic carbon, 327 t nitrogen and 17 t dissolved organic carbon. Therefore, in addition to the coastal erosion input to the Beaufort Sea, retrogressive thaw slumps additionally release 3 \% of sediment and 8 \% of organic carbon into the ocean. Finally, the future evolution of retrogressive thaw slumps under a warming scenario with summer air temperatures increasing by 2-3 °C by 2081-2100, would lead to an increase of 109-114\% in release of sediment-meltwater. It can be concluded that retrogressive thaw slumps are sensitive to climatic conditions and under projected future Arctic warming will contribute larger amounts of thawed permafrost material (including organic carbon and nitrogen) into the environment.},
  language  = {en}
}