METADATA METADATA Title: Drift Isopach Map, Ts'ude niline Tu'eyeta Candidate Protected Area, Northwest Territories. GSC Open File 6046 Originator: Smith, I.R., Lesk-Winfield, K. Publication_Date: 2009 Presentation_Form: CD-ROM Series_Name: Open File Issue_Identification: 6046 Publication_Place: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Publisher: Geological Survey of Canada Citation_Details: Smith, I.R., Lesk-Winfield, K. 2009: Drift Isopach Map, Ts'ude niline Tu'eyeta Candidate Protected Area, Northwest Territories; Geological Survey of Canada, Open File 6046, 1 CD. Abstract: This publication presents a model of interpolated and minimum estimates of drift thickness overlying bedrock of the Ts’ude niline Tu’eyeta Candidate Protected Area. Drift refers to all unconsolidated earth materials, and largely comprises glacial sediments of Late Wisconsinan age (25,000 – 10,000). Understanding the extent and thickness of the regional drift cover is important to studies of landslides, hydrogeology, permafrost and massive ground ice distribution, granular aggregate assessments, and drift geochemical exploration. Data used in the drift isopach model is principally derived from 30,006 seismic shothole drillers’ logs (Smith et al., 2007; Smith and Lesk-Winfield, in press). These lithostratigraphic logs were created during geotechnical seismic exploration when holes were drilled to set explosive charges. A secondary source of data, 1216 data points from the borehole geotechnical database of Smith et al. (2005) were also included, as were 52 points from Janicki’s (2005) formation top well database. Additionally, 35,277 points were interpolated from published surficial geology maps of Duk-Rodkin (1992, 2002a, b; 2005) and Duk-Rodkin and Hughes (1992a-h, 1993a, b). Based on their respective map legends, polygons of till and colluvial veneer were assigned maximum drift thicknesses of 2 or 3 m, while rock polygons were assigned drift thicknesses of 0 m. The Ts’ude niline Tu’eyeta Candidate Protected Area is characterized by prominent northwest – southeast oriented bands of thick (>14 m) drift oriented parallel or oblique to the Mackenzie River, interspersed with areas of thin drift, particularly in the southern regions where it rises towards the Mackenzie Mountains. In the northern part of the candidate protected area, drift appears to infill a valley that has a geometry suggesting it was a tributary channel of a previously connected preglacial Ontaratue and Ramparts river, that drained southeastward through a valley into a preglacial Mackenzie River. The southeastward and then abruptly northeast flow path of the modern Ontaratue River likely reflects a diversion along an eastward retreating ice margin during deglaciation. Thick packages of drift in the Fort Good Hope area may relate to the infill of former tributary channels or drainage paths of a preglacial Mackenzie River, and are comprised of both till and glaciofluvial sediments. Thick drift cover north of the candidate protected area is largely till (Smith and Lesk-Winfield, in press). Thick deposits along the west and southwest borders of the candidate protected area are considered to be related to ice marginal deposits emplaced along the mountain front during deglaciation. Areas of thin drift in the candidate protected area are largely comprised of till overlying shale bedrock. The abundance of small lakes, ponds, and wetlands in the central Ontaratue and lower Ramparts river areas reflect the impermeability of the clay and fine-silt rich till that underlies this terrain, and the shale bedrock that underlies the drift material. Surface ponding is also likely a reflection of the extensive discontinuous and intermediate discontinuous permafrost and associated high (>15%) to moderate (10-15%) ice contents that characterize the area (Heginbottom, 2000; Smith et al., 2007). As the thickness of permafrost in the area is poorly constrained, it is uncertain whether the thick valley fills operate as sub-surface aquifers, draining into the Mackenzie River. Isolated areas of thick drift east of Fort Good Hope appear to have significant granular aggregate potential (Duk-Rodkin, 1992a; Smith and Lesk-Winfield, 2009). Most of the east, north, and central terrain of the candidate protected area offer little granular aggregate potential; that which does exist is largely comprised of sand-rich deposits (Smith and Lesk-Winfield, 2009). Large, surface gravel, and mixed gravel and sand deposits are found along the lower Gayna and Mountain rivers, both within and outside the proposed boundaries of the candidate protected area. These deposits are associated with a series of glaciofluvial outwash terraces (Duk-Rodkin and Hughes, 1993a), and range in thickness between 5 and 10+ m (Smith and Lesk-Winfield, 2009). Purpose: Produced as part of the Secure Canadian Energy Supply Program, Northern Energy Development - Mackenzie Valley Pipeline project and Program of Energy Research and Development (PERD) Pipelines Program 1.2.5 Supplemental_Information: Database and GIS constructed from individual seismic shothole drillers’ log records, formation top well log records, geotechnical borehole log records and surficial geology maps – providing lithostratigraphic information on shallow (~<20 m) unconsolidated drift materials and bedrock. Data extents through the central Mackenzie corridor, NWT, covering parts or all of NTS map areas 106F, 106G, 106H, 106I, 106J, and 106K. Language: English Beginning_Date: 2007 Ending_Date: 2009 Progress: Complete Maintenance_and_Update_Frequency: As needed West_Bounding_Coordinate: -134.00 East_Bounding_Coordinate: -127.50 North_Bounding_Coordinate: 68.00 South_Bounding_Coordinate: 65.00 Theme_Keyword: Drift Isopach Map Theme_Keyword Thesaurus: aggregate, bedrock, bedrock geology, borehole, boulders, buried valley, candidate protected area, clay, database, drift, drift isopach, environmental impact assessment, frontier exploration, frozen, GIS, geographic information system, Geological Survey of Canada, geology, geophysical seismic exploration, geotechnical, glacial deposits, glaciation, granular aggregate, gravel, GSC, hydrogeology, ice, ice lenses, inverse distance weighting, isopach, land use classification, landslide, LID_extension, limestone, Line_name, litholog, lithostratigraphy, Mackenzie Valley pipeline, massive ice, MGP, muskeg, NTS, national topographic system, NRCAN, Natural Resources Canada, PERD, permafrost, petroleum exploration, pipeline, Program of Energy Research and Development, protected area, Quaternary, resource assessment, rock, rocks, sand, sandstone, Secure Canadian Energy Supply Program, sedimentology, seismic shothole, shale, shot hole, shothole, shothole database, silt, stratigraphy, subsurface deposits, surficial geology, Tertiary, thermokarst, till, till veneer, unique identifier, UID, unconsolidated material, water, 1:250 000, Atlantic Richfield Canada Limited, Candel Oil Limited, Chevron Canada Limited, Gulf Canada Resources Limited, Imperial Oil Limited, Mobil Oil Canada Limited, Olympic Seismic Limited, Petro-Canada, Petrofina Canada Limited, Shell Canada, Sigma Exploration, Sunoco, Texaco Canada Limited, Western Decalta Petroleum Limited. Place_Keyword: Northwest Territories. Place_Keyword_Thesaurus: NTS sheets, 106F, 106G, 106H, 106I, 106J, 106K, Canada, Candidate Protected Area, Fort Good Hope, Gayna River, Mackenzie corridor, Mackenzie Mountains, Mackenzie Valley, Mackenzie River, Mountain River, Northwest Territories, NWT, Ontaratue River, Ramparts River, Ts’ude niline Tu’eyeta. Use_Constraints: ©Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, 2009 Browse_Graphic_File_1_Name: OF6046.pmf Browse_Graphic_File_1_Description: ESRI ArcReader viewable map Browse_Graphic_File_1_Type: published map file (PMF) document Browse_Graphic_File_2_Name: of_6046.pdf Browse_Graphic_File_2_Description: Adobe Reader viewable overview map Browse_Graphic_File_2_Type: portable document file (pdf) Point_of_Contact: Dr. I. Rod Smith Contact_Organization: Geological Survey of Canada, Calgary Address_Type: mailing and physical Address: 3303-33rd Street N.W. City: Calgary Province: Alberta Postal_Code: T2L 2A7 Voice_Telephone: (403)292-7132 Facsimile_Telephone: (403)292-5377 E-mail: rodsmith@NRCan.gc.ca Distributor_Contact: Bookstore Contact_Organization: Geological Survey of Canada Address_Type: mailing and physical Address: 180 – 615 Booth Street City: Ottawa Province: Ontario Postal_Code: K1A 0E9 Voice_Telephone: (613)995-4342 Toll-free (Canada and U.S.A.): 1-888-252-4301 Facsimile_Telephone: (613)943-0646 E-mail: gscbookstore@NRCan.gc.ca Metadata_Contact: Head Geoinformatics Contact_Organization: Geological Survey of Canada, Calgary Address_Type: mailing and physical Address: 3303-33rd Street N.W. City: Calgary Province: Alberta Postal_Code: T2L 2A7 Voice_Telephone: (403)292-7000 Facsimile_Telephone: (403)292-4961 E-mail: GSCC_datainfo@NRCan.gc.ca Metadata_Future_Review_Date: As the open file is updated Metadata_Date: April, 2009