Mackenzie Gas Pipeline and the Boreal Environment Information Project

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Contents in this Topic

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Climate Home Climate Patterns River and Soils Mackenzie River Cities Climate Change Links and References

Introduction

Welcome to the climate section This website provides an basic analysis of the regional surface climate of the Northwest Territories of Canada in relation to the Mackenzie Valley. The analysis will exhibit a transect of the basic key climate characteristics of each ecological region, which will allow both scientists, and non-scientists alike to better investigate and appreciate the basic regional climate of the Mackenzie River Basin.
This website was built for the intended audience of anyone residing withing the Northwest Territories, students, teachers, and scientists. The content presented in these pages is not site-specific an is intended for all audiences. It is intended only to add information to the general knowledge of the Mackenzie Valley's regional climate so that people can make better informed decisions about research interests and large-scale projects such as building oil and natural gas pipelines through the Northwest Territories and other similar boreal regions.

Material

The information provided by this site is as follows:

• Climate Patterns
• Mackenzie River Basin and surrounding soils
  
• Cities along the Mackenzie River
• Discussion about Climate Change

This section was produced by Erik U. Noble, a doctoral candidate in the Environmental Studies program. It is an addition to the product of a graduate research seminar taught by Professor Peter Blanken at the University of Colorado at Boulder. The material presented represents the result of a literature review about climate characteristics of the Mackenzie Basin. Any inaccuracies are the fault of the author and not that of the University of Colorado. All comments are welcome to be sent to nobleeu@colorado.edu

Layout and navigation

The various topics in this section can be accessed through the links on the left. Throughout this section, I will present links to related internet resources (models, journals, technical documentation) within the green boxes at left. In addition, a list of sources can be found in the Links and References section, and citations will be made throughout the text. Finally, please visit the other topics in this project via the tabs above.

General summary

In 2002, agencies in charge of the development of regulatory energy developments in the Northwest Territories came together to propose the building of a natural gas pipeline that will stretch from the northwest corner of the region down into northwest Alberta.The pipeline will transverse the Northwest Territories, starting from Ninglingtak and Taglu in the north, stretching down to Northwest Alberta. Traversing nearly 1560 km, the gas pipeline will pass through several different areas that have different ecological characteristics: arctic, low arctic tundra wetlands, and boreal forest. Each of these regions present soil, water, and atmospheric distinctions that are very important to consider in designing and carrying out a project such as the magnitude of an under-ground  natural gas pipeline.

Climate change will occur throughout Canada. The phrase climate change refers to the variability from the average temperature and precipitation patterns observed over the regions such as the Northwest Territories. In the long term, climate change will influence atmospheric circulation patterns and the state of the moisture in surface soil.  Changes in soil moisture can lead to increased erosion from thawing permafrost, and a rise in the number of forest fires and landslides. Reducing the uncertainty of predicting or mitigating such changes are the goals of research scientists and climate modelers who are trying to assess the climate of the Mackenzie Basin.