P O S I V A O Y

O l k i l u o t o

F I -27160 EURAJOKI , F INLAND

Te l +358-2-8372 31

Fax +358-2-8372 3709

Anne B i rg i t te N ie l sen

January 2010

Work ing Repor t 2010 -07

Present Conditions in Greenlandand the Kangerlussuaq Area

January 2010

Working Reports contain information on work in progress

or pending completion.

The conclusions and viewpoints presented in the report

are those of author(s) and do not necessarily

coincide with those of Posiva.

Anne B i rg i t te N ie l sen

Geo log ica l Su rvey o f Denmark and Green land

Work ing Report 2010 -07

Present Conditions in Greenlandand the Kangerlussuaq Area

ABSTRACT Greenland is the world’s largest island, with an area of 2.2 million square kilometres, 80

% of which is covered by the ice sheet. The climate is Arctic, but as Greenland stretches

2600 km from north to south, there is a huge variability in climate, with temperature

decreasing from south to north. Due to the influence of oceanic currents, the west coast

is slightly warmer than the east coast. Precipitation also decreases strongly from the

south to the north, and also with distance from the coast. Kangerlussuaq is located in the

dry, continental area of central west Greenland.

The bedrock of Greenland is dominated by Precambrian gneisses, with sedimentary

rocks occurring in some areas of East and North Greenland, and smaller areas of basalts.

All of Greenland has been glaciated several times and has thus been eroded and shaped

by the ice, as it still is at the ice margin. Soils are generally thin, and especially in the

gneiss regions rather poor in plant nutrients. Permafrost occurs throughout the ice free

areas of Greenland. It is continuous in the north, discontinuous along parts of the central

east and west coast and occurs as isolated patches in the south. Kangerlussuaq is in the

southernmost part of the continuous permafrost zone.

The spatial variability in climate is also reflected in the vegetation zones, which range

from Arctic dessert in the far north, through dwarf shrub zones with increasing plant

height and density towards the south, to the arctic shrub zone in the continental parts of

West Greenland and subarctic Birch forest in South Greenland.

The terrestrial food chains in Greenland are generally short and with few species. Cyclic

variation in population sizes has been observed in some mammal species, including

lemming and caribou.

Many species of mammals and birds are associated with the coastal environment, which

is therefore also and important resource area for the human population. Fishery is the

most economically important industry in Greenland, and meat from hunting plays an

important role in local consumption. Human settlement has occurred since 2500 BC,

when the first palaeoeskimo people arrived from Canada. However, occupation has

been interrupted by periods of extinction associated with climate changes. Today the

population is 57 000, which is ca. 0.2 people per km2 of ice free area. There is no arable

agriculture, but sheep farming occurs in south Greenland, and impacts the vegetation

locally. However, the main human impact on ecosystems is not land use, but direct

impact on populations through fishing and hunting.

Keywords: Greenland, natural conditions, climate, bedrock, vegetation, human activity,

settlement history

Grönlannin ja Kangerlussuagin luonnonolosuhteet ja ihmistoiminta

TIIVISTELMÄ

Grönlanti on maailman suurin saari ja sen pinta-ala on noin 2.2 miljoonaa neliö-

kilometriä, josta noin 80 prosenttia on jään peitossa. Grönlannin ilmasto on arktinen,

mutta koska saari on pohjois-etelä -suunnassa 2600 kilometriä pitkä, on ilmasto-oloissa

suurta vaihtelua. Merivirtojen vaikutuksesta saaren länsirannikko on hieman itäran-

nikkoa lauhkeampi. Sadanta pienenee selvästi etelästä pohjoiseen ja toisaalta siirryt-

täessä rannikolta sisämaahan. Kangerlussuag sijaitsee kuivalla, mantereisella alueella

läntisessä Grönlannissa.

Grönlannin kallioperää hallitsevat prekambriset gneissit. Sedimenttikiveä esiintyy pai-

koitellen saaren itä- ja pohjoisosissa. Pienillä alueilla esiintyy myös basaltteja. Koko

Grönlanti on jäätiköitynyt useita kertoja ja maaston muodot ovat näin ollen jään

muokkaamia. Maaperä on tyypillisesti ohutta ja erityisesti kallioperältään gneissisillä

alueilla vähäravinteista. Ikiroutaa esiintyy jäättömillä alueilla. Ikirouta-alue on yhtenäi-

nen saaren pohjoisosissa, epäyhtenäinen osissa itä- ja länsirannikon keskiosia ja esiintyy

erillisinä laikkuina etelässä. Kangerlussuag sijaitsee yhtenäisen ikirouta-alueen etelä-

osassa. Ilmaston alueellinen vaihtelu heijastuu myös kasvillisuusvyöhykkeisiin, jotka

vaihtelevat pohjoisen arktisesta aavikosta varvikko vyöhykkeiden kautta enenevämmän

kasvikorkeuden ja -tiheyden luonnehtimaan etelään. Etelä-Grönlannissa kasvaa koivuja.

Maaekosysteemissä ravintoketjut ovat yleisesti ottaen lyhyitä ja vähälajisia. Popu-

laatiokokojen syklisyyttä on todettu joillain nisäkäslajeilla kuten sopuleilla ja karibuilla.

Monet nisäkäs- ja lintulajit elävät rannikolla, joka näin on myös merkittävä alue

ihmistoiminnan kannalta. Kalastus on Grönlannin täkein elinkeino ja metsästys on

merkittävä tekijä paikallisessa kulutuksessa. Ihmisasutusta on ollut saarella 2500-luvulta

e.a.a. lähtien, jolloin ensimmäiset inuiitit saapuivat alueelle nykyisen Kanadan

suunnalta. Yhtämittaista asutusta kuitenkin katkaisevat jäätiköitymiskaudet. Tänä

päivänä väestöä on noin 57 000 ja väentiheys noin 0.2 as/neliökilometri jäättömällä

alueella. Viljelytoimintaa Grönlannissa ei ole, mutta lampaankasvatusta on saaren

eteläosissa, mikä vaikuttaa paikallisesti myös kasvillisuuteen. Pääasiallinen ihmis-

toiminnan vaikutus ympäristöön ei kuitenkaan tule maakäytön vaan kalastuksen ja

metsästyksen kautta.

Avainsanat: Grönlanti, luonnonolot, kallioperä, kasvillisuus, ilmasto, ihmistoiminta,

asutushistoria

PREFACE This report is produced as part of the Greenland Analogue Project (GAP), carried out as

a collaboration project with the Canadian Nuclear Waste Managing Organization

(NWMO), Posiva Oy and Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Co (SKB) as

collaborating and financing partners.

The overall aim of the project is to improve the current understanding of how ice sheets,

during future cold periods, affect the groundwater flow and hydrochemistry around a

deep geological repository in crystalline bedrock.

1

TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT TIIVISTELMÄ PREFACE

1. STUDY AREA ...................................................................................................... 3 1.1 Greenland ..................................................................................................... 3 1.2 Kangerlussuaq .............................................................................................. 4

2. CLIMATE AND METEOROLOGY ........................................................................ 7 2.1 General characteristics .................................................................................. 7 2.2 Spatial variation across Greenland ................................................................ 8 2.3 The Kangerlussuaq region........................................................................... 12 2.4 Temporal variation ....................................................................................... 13

3. BEDROCK ......................................................................................................... 15 3.1 Common properties ..................................................................................... 15 3.2 Chemistry .................................................................................................... 17 3.3 Processes ................................................................................................... 17

3.3.1 Erosion ................................................................................................ 17 3.3.2 Earthquakes ........................................................................................ 18

4. SOIL .................................................................................................................. 19 4.1 Common properties ..................................................................................... 19 4.2 Soil processes in the Kangerlussuaq region ................................................ 19 4.3 Soil chemistry in the Kangerlussuaq region ................................................. 20

5. PERMAFROST .................................................................................................. 21 5.1 Common properties and definition ............................................................... 21 5.2 Spatial variation ........................................................................................... 22 5.3 Permafrost structures near Kangerlussuaq .................................................. 25

6. GLACIAL ENVIRONMENT ................................................................................ 27 6.1 The Greenland ice sheet ............................................................................. 27 6.2 Glaciation history ......................................................................................... 27 6.3 Glacial processes ........................................................................................ 28 6.4 Glacial geomorphology in west Greenland and the Kangerlussuaq region . 30 6.5 Eolian deposits ............................................................................................ 32

7. LAND ECOSYSTEMS ....................................................................................... 33 7.1 Common properties ..................................................................................... 33 7.2 Vegetation ................................................................................................... 33

7.2.1 Vegetation in the Kangerlussuaq region .............................................. 35 7.3 Fauna .......................................................................................................... 38 7.4 Wetlands ..................................................................................................... 41

8. LAKES AND PONDS ......................................................................................... 45 8.1 Common properties ..................................................................................... 45 8.2 Spatial variation ........................................................................................... 46

9. RIVER SYSTEMS .............................................................................................. 49

10. MARINE ECOSYSTEMS ................................................................................... 51 10.1 Common properties ..................................................................................... 51 10.2 Fauna .......................................................................................................... 51

2

11. COASTAL SYSTEMS ........................................................................................ 53 11.1 General properties ....................................................................................... 53 11.2 Vegetation ................................................................................................... 53

12. ANTHROPOGENIC SYSTEM............................................................................ 55 12.1 History ......................................................................................................... 55

12.1.1 The prehistory of Greenland ................................................................ 55 12.1.2 Recent history of Greenland ................................................................ 57 12.1.3 History of Kangerlussuaq ..................................................................... 58

12.2 Land use ..................................................................................................... 59 12.2.1 Settlements .......................................................................................... 59 12.2.2 Agriculture ........................................................................................... 59 12.2.3 Industry ................................................................................................ 59

12.3 Impact on natural systems ........................................................................... 59 12.4 Impact of natural systems on humans ......................................................... 60

REFERENCES ........................................................................................................... 63

APPENDIX ................................................................................................................. 69

3

1. STUDY AREA

1.1 Greenland

Greenland is the world’s largest island, 2.2 square kilometres, and stretches 2600 km

from north to south. Ca. 80 % of Greenland is covered by the Greenland ice sheet. The

remaining, ice free area covers 410,449 km2 (Statistics Greenland, 2008) mainly along

the coast, and is the habitat of the flora, fauna and human population. Nearly 80 % of

the ice free land consists of mountain complexes (Sieg et al, 2006).

The population of Greenland is 57.000, of which 15.000 live in the capital, Nuuk.

Sisimiut is the second largest town, with 6100 people. Greenland is divided into 18

counties and 59 settlements (Jensen & Christensen, 2003). Greenland is a self-

governing overseas administrative division (home rule) within the Kingdom Denmark.

In this report mainly the Greenlandic place names will be used. The location of most

places mentioned can be seen from the maps in figures 1 and 2. From species of higher

plants and vertebrates, both the scientific and English common name will be stated at

the fist mention of the species. For mosses, license and invertebrates scientific names

are used, while for species groups (families, orders etc.) the common English names are

used in most cases.

Figure 1. Map of Greenland, showing the location of place names mentioned in this

report.

4

1.2 Kangerlussuaq

This report will focus mainly on the area around Kangerlussuaq (in Danish Søndre

Strømfjord) in central West Greenland. However, the exact delineation of the area

varies a little between the studies of different parameters, according to the available

material.

The landscape of central west Greenland is a typical fiord landscape with numerous

long (typically around 25 km), narrow, and up to 600 m deep fiords which terminate in

U-shaped valleys. Some of these contain an outlet glacier, while the others are partially

filled with terraces of glaciofluvial and marine sediments (Ter Brink, 1975). The latter

is true for the valley where the town of Kangerlussuaq is located. It is at the head of a

particularly long fiord (165 km), also called Kangerlussuaq or Søndre Strømfjord. (To

add to the confusion, there is also another fiord on the east coast of Greenland called

Kangerlussuaq. That is not the one referred to in this report, but its existence is

important to keep in mind when searching the literature for information on the area).

The Kangerlussuaq region is the part of West Greenland where the distance from the

coast to the ice sheet is larges, ca 200 km (Funder, 1989). The position far from the sea

and close to the ice margin influences the local climate, which is continental and dry,

and this in turn affects the biota in the area. There is a strong climatic gradient from the

inland towards the coast. The area north of the Kangerlussuaq fiord towards the Disko

Bay is lowland, with only few hills above 400 m, and with rounded summits because of

Pleistocene glaciation. South of the fiord towards the Maniitsoq ice cap (Sukkertoppen)

is mostly highland, with some areas above 1000 m.a.s.l. (Fredskild, 1996). From the

bottom of the fiord to the ice sheet are two valleys running roughly east-west,

Sandflugtsdalen (which translates to Sand drift valley) and Ørkendalen (which means

Dessert Valley), which merge 3 km east of the town.

The town of Kangerlussuaq has a population of ca. 500, and is cantered around the

airport, which is the largest in Greenland, with connections to Europe and to other parts

of Greenland. It is in Greenlandic terms an easily accessible area, and this, combined

with the research support centre at KISS, means that quite a lot of scientific studies have

been carried out in the region.

5

Figure 2. Map of the Kangerlussuaq region with place names.

6

7

2. CLIMATE AND METEOROLOGY

2.1 General characteristics

Greenland as a whole has an arctic climate –defined by the temperature of the warmest

month being below +10 C. Otherwise, the climate across Greenland is very variable,

both over long and short distances. A report by Cappelen et al., 2001, covers the Danish

Meteorological Institutes’ observations from 42 sites for the period 1958 to 1999 of air

temperature, precipitation, humidity, wind and other climatic parameters, and includes

climate normals for 1961-90. For the station in Kangerlussuaq measurements do not go

back as far as 1961, but provisional normal averages for 1973 to 1999 are presented.

All over Greenland there is a strong climatic difference between coastal areas, affected

by the cold and often ice filled water, and the inland areas between the coast and the ice

sheet. Summers are much warmer inland, while winters are milder in those coastal areas

that have open water in winter. Precipitation is also higher in the coastal areas.

Greenland in general is characterised by relatively long periods with calm or slight

breezes, and occasional strong winds, with very strong gusts. Temperature inversions,

where temperature increases with height in the lowest few hundred meters of the

atmosphere are quite common. In winter, the lowest layer of air is cooled by radiation

cooling of the snow surface. In summer, the ice melt has a cooling effect. This

temperature inversion means that the snow often melts earlier in the mountains than at

sea level, and the vegetation is most lush at a few hundred meters altitude (Cappelen et

al, 2001).

The climate of Greenland is much influenced by the circulation of surface waters in the

surrounding sea, and accompanying ice transport. The two main components are the

North Atlantic Drift and the East Greenland Current (see figure 3). The North Atlantic

Drift is a continuation of the Gulf Stream, with high salinity and warm water. It splits

into two in the Atlantic around 60 north, and forms the Irminger Current, which turns

west towards South Greenland. Here is meets the East Greenland Current, which has

low salinity, cold surface water that flows south from the Arctic Ocean. The two

currents gradually become mixed as they turn around the south tip of Greenland and

continue north as the West Greenland Current (Jensen, 2003). Because of this mixing,

and northward flow along the west coast, the west generally has a milder climate than

the east coast at similar latitudes (Funder, 1989).

8

NAC

EG

C

IC

LC

WG

C

Mixing

Deep water

formation

Figure 3. Overview of the dominant sea currents around Greenland. NAC: North

Atlantic Current. IC: Irminger current. EGC: East Greenland current. WGC: West

Greenland Current. LC: Labrador Current.

2.2 Spatial variation across Greenland

Cappelen et al. (2001) divide Greenland into seven weather- and climate regions (see

figure 4). Because of Greenland’s large north-south extend (2600 km, 22 degrees of

latitude), there is naturally a difference in climate between north and south. There are

also large differences between the east and west coasts, caused by the pattern of sea

currents linked to the global thermohaline circulation (see above). Nevertheless, the

difference in mean July temperature along the coast from north to south is only a few

degrees (see figure 5), as the 24 hours sunlight in the north compensate for the low sun

altitude. The more local gradients in summer temperature from the coast to the inland

are stronger. In winter, on the other hand, the temperature difference from south to north

9

is very large, ca. 30 C (see figure 6). Also, the length of the period with average

temperatures above freezing varies from two months in the north to six in the south

(Funder 1989; Cappelen et al., 2001).

##

#

#

#

#

#

# #

##

#

#

# ##

#

##

#

#

##

##

#

#

##

#

##

#

#

#

#

# #

#

#

#

#

NUUK

DYE2

DYE3

DUNDAS

SUMMIT

SUMMIT

AASIAAT

PAAMIUT

QAANAAQ

PITUFFIK

SISIMIUT

SIORALIK

QAQORTOQ

DANEBORG

UUNARTEQ

TASIILAQ

HALL LAND

UPERNAVIK

ILULISSAT

MANIITSOQ

APUTITEEQ

APUTITEEQ

NARSARSUAQ

TIMMIARMIUT

STATION NORD

DANMARKSHAVN

IKERMIUARSUK

QEQERTARSUAQ

KAP MORRIS JESUP

KANGILINNGUIT

KANGERLUSSUAQ

ILLOQQORTOORMIUT

PRINS CHRISTIAN SUND

North

Southeast

Ice cap

Southwest

South

Northwest

Northeast

Figure 4. Climate regions according to Cappelen et al., 2001, and the location of

climate stations (red #). Some stations measure both temperature and precipitation,

some only one of those.

There is also a very strong gradient in precipitation, which is very high in Southeast

Greenland and gradually decreases towards the north and west (see figure 7). However,

there are also strong local precipitation gradients from the sea towards the inland, and

variations caused by local topographic conditions. Kangerlussuaq is one of the few

inland weather stations that measures precipitation, and as seen from figure 7 this area is

much dryer than the coastal areas at similar latitudes.

The Greenland ice cap makes up its own climatic region, where air temperature in the

central part is almost never above freezing, because of the elevation and the high albedo

of the snow surface. In winter, temperatures can be as low as -60 C. There is an almost

permanent temperature inversion over the ice, which causes katabatic winds that affect

10

the areas lying around the ice sheet. As these winds blow down from the ice sheet, the

air is compressed because of the change in altitude, and is thereby heated by 1 C pr.

100 m drop (the adiabatic rate). This is called the Foehn effect. If this wind becomes

warmer that the air close to the coast, it is felt as locally a warm Foehn wind at the

bottom of the fiords. If on the other hand it is still colder than the coastal air (despite the

adiabatic heating), it will also be heavier than the coastal air mass, and can push it’s way

under it as a cold fall wind, all the way to the open sea. Such winds are most common

on the east coast.

Figure 5. Mean July temperature. Data from Cappelen et at., 2001. The colours

represent interpolations between the stations, not measured temperature at given

localities other than the stations marked on the map.

11

Figure 6. Mean January temperature. Data from Cappelen et at., 2001. The colours

represent interpolations between the stations, not measured temperature at given

localities other than the stations marked on the map.

Figure 7. Annual precipitation in millimetre. Data from Cappelen et al., 2001. The

colours represent intrapolations between the stations, not meassured precipitation at

given localities other than the stations.

12

The lowest temperatures at sea level are found in North Greenland, where winters are

very cold (mean January temp. -30.1 C to -35.8 C), and summers short, although they

can be relatively warm inland (Mean July temp. 4.9 C in Hall Land). Precipitation is

generally very low, and much of the region is arctic dessert. At Station Nord the annual

precipitation is 188 mm, but that is unusually high for the region (Cappelen et al.,

2001).

Northwest Greenland also has very harsh winters (mean January temp. -12.7 C to -

23.3 C) as Baffin Bay is almost completely ice covered. Most of the ice along all of the

west coast melts away in summer, and temperatures become fairly mild (mean July

temp. 4.5-7.5 C). Precipitation is low in the northern part of the region and increases

further south.

Northeast Greenland also has cold winters (mean January temp. -16.1 C to -23.1 C),

and cool summers (mean July temp. 3.3-4.0 C) because of the ice filled, cold East

Greenland Current. Annual precipitation is lowest in the north, higher towards the south

of the region (141 mm at Daneborg to 502 mm at Uunarteq).

Southeast Greenland is the wettest region of Greenland, with annual precipitation up to

2500 mm, with weather that is often affected by low pressures between Greenland and

Iceland. Temperatures in the summer are relatively low (mean July temp. 5.0-6.4 C)

because of the East Greenland Current.

South Greenland has very strong temperature gradients from the coast (with cool

summers and mild winters) to the inland (warm summers, locally with July means over

10 C, and colder winters), which result in a monsoon like system of sea breezes in

summer and land breezes in winter.

2.3 The Kangerlussuaq region

Kangerlussuaq is located in the Southwest climatic region. This region, like south

Greenland, is also characterised by steep climate gradients from the coast to the inland.

The coastal zone has mild winters and cool summers with variable weather. The inland

zone has warmer, more stable summers but colder winters. The difference in mean July

temperature from the outer coast to inland is high, partly because the coastal areas are

cooled by the cold water and sea ice nearby, partly because of warm katabatic Foehn

winds that blow down from the ice sheet inland. This can be clearly seen by comparing

the data from the stations at Kangerlussuaq with those from Sisimiut ca. 160 km away

on the coast (see figure 4). Thus, the average July temperature at Kangerlussuaq is

10.7 C, while it is only 6.3 C at Sisimiut. The mean January temperature is -19.8 C at

Kangerlussuaq and -12.8 C at Sisimiut. The average number of days with frost is 254.7

days/year at both stations. At the station Dye 2 on the ice cap ca. 200 km inland from

Kangerlussuaq the mean July temperature is -2.6 C and the mean January temperature -

25.7 C.

For a more detailed picture of the temperature gradient right at the ice margin, it is not

sufficient to look at the permanent weather stations of the meteorological institute. In

the Tasersiaq area about 150 km south of Kangerlussuaq, temperature was monitored

along transects on the ice sheet in 1999 to 2001 as part of a glaciological project

13

(Ahlstrøm, 2003). At the lower stations about 900 m.a.s.l. monthly average

temperatures ranged from 3.5 C to -22.3 C, while on the upper stations around 1200

m.a.s.l. the range was 0.8 C to -22.6 C. Local factors, especially wind pattern, as well

as elevation, seemed to influence temperature at the different stations.

At the coast fog is common in the period May-September, but it is much rarer further

into the fiords, such as at Kangerlussuaq airbase (10.7 days/year, versus 51.4 days/year

at Sisimiut). Precipitation is also higher at the coast (Sisimiut 383 mm) than inland

(Kangerlussuaq 149 mm). At Sisimiut the winters are snow rich (average snow depth in

March, which is the most snow rich month, is 69 cm), but there is only little snow in

Kangerlussuaq (average snow depth in March 13 mm). However, snow does

occasionally occur in all months, except July (Dijkmans & Törnqvist, 1991). The

Maniitsoq ice cap and an outcrop of the ice sheet proper near Tasersiaq to the south of

Kangerlussuaq provide topographical barriers to the prevailing movement of air masses,

and therefore cause the very dry climate in the region.

Annual average wind speed is 3.6 m/s at Kangerlussuaq. The dominant wind direction

all year is from northeast, blowing of the ice sheet. Winds are strongest in winter

(Dijkmans & Törnqvist, 1991). Greenland in general is characterised by relatively long

periods with calm or slight breezes, and occasional strong winds, with very strong gusts.

However, strong winds are rarer and less extreme at Kangerlussuaq than elsewhere,

probably because of the above mentioned topographical barriers.

2.4 Temporal variation

On a daily scale, the weather in Greenland is very variable. For example, all year round

short periods of relatively high temperatures can occur. Especially in the southern parts

this can result in periodical snow melts, with temperatures around 10 C for a short time

during the winter (Cappelen et al., 2001). Interannual and decadal variations in the

climate of western Greenland (especially in winter) is affected by variations in the

atmospheric North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) (Jensen, 2003), which accounts for much

of the climate variability around the North Atlantic (Hurrell, 1996). The NAO is an

index of the difference in air pressure between Lisbon, Portugal, and Stykkisholmur,

Iceland (Hurrell, 1996). When the NAO is in its positive phase (which means that

difference in the air pressure is larger than average), western Greenland is affected by

winds from the northern arctic, with cold, dry winters, while Western Europe has

westerly winds, and mild, wet winters. In periods with a negative NAO (smaller-than-

average difference in air pressure), mild wet winders are dominant in West Greenland,

while those in Europe are dry and cool (Jensen 2003). For the time of the instrumental

records, stations in West Greenland experienced a warming trend from 1890 to ca.

1930, the a cooling until ca. 1985, and since then there has been a warming trend

(Cappelen, 2008).

During the period 1993-1998 a rapid thinning of parts of the ice cap in southern

Greenland was meassured by airborne laser altimetry (Krabill et al, 1999). In some

areas in the Southeast it was thinning by up to 10 cm pr year.

The longer term temporal variation in climate through the Holocene has been governed

by changes in sea currents and ice transport (the balance between the East Greenland

14

Current and influence of warmer Atlantic water from the Irminger Current), and has

sometimes had profound effects on human life on the island. Holocene climate

variations have been studied using palaeoecological methods on sediments from lakes

(e.g. McGowan et al., 2008) and from marine cores (e.g. Jensen, 2003).

15

2. BEDROCK

3.1 Common properties

The systematical study of the geology of Greenland goes back to 1850 (Funder, 1989),

and there are numerous publications on the geology of Greenland, too many to review

here. Those published by the Geological survey of Greenland (and later the Geological

survey of Denmark and Greenland), and certain other monographs, are listed by Dawes

& Glendal, 2008.

Precambrian crystalline rocks, especially gneisses, make up the bedrock of most of

Greenland (See figure 8), including the parts under the icecap. Sedimentary rocks are

mostly found in areas of East and North Greenland. In East Greenland there is

sandstone, pelites and carbonates deposited in the Late Proterozoic and early Palaeozoic

time, and metamorphosed in the Early Silurian. In other parts of East Greenland there

are terrestrial sandstones of Devonian and Carboniferous ages, and Mesozoic sandstone

and shale.

In the southern part of North Greenland the Late Proterozoic and early Palaeozoic basin

was a shallow sea with carbonate sedimentation, whereas further north the basin was

deeper, with sedimentation of sandstone and shale. The sandstone and shale was later

metamorphed. In West Greenland sedimentary rocks in the form of sandstone and shale

are mostly confined to the shelf.

Greenland obtained is approximate shape in the Late Mesozoic by active ocean floors

spreading both to the west (separating it from North America) and to the west. In the

early Tertiary volcanism followed the ocean floor spread formed plateau basalt in the

Nugssuaq area north of Disko Bay, and locally on the east coast (Funder, 1989).

16

Figure 8. Overview map of the bedrock Geology of Greenland. Sedimentary rocks are

shown in blue and green tones, basalts in dark purple and crystalline rocks in pink,

light purple and orange colours. GEUS.

The Kangerlussuaq area is located in the Precambrian region of West Greenland

(Steenfelt et al., 2004), where the bedrock is dominated by gneisses. This is the parent

material for most soils, resulting in generally acidic soil types. The crust is mostly of

Achaean age, formed around 2.8 Ga (Steenfelt et al., 2004). From a little south of

Kangerlussuaq to the southern shore of the Disko Bay is the Precambrian

Nassugtoqidian belt, where the gneisses and granites are reworked and locally

interlayered with folded belts of metasediments and metavolcanics. This belt was

17

formed during the Nassugtoqidian orogeny from 2.0-1.75 Ga, a period of continental

rifting, subduction and a subsequent collision phase, which resulted in granite and

pegmatite veining. The area, especially south of the Kangerlussuaq fiord around

Safartoq contains alkaline ultramafic dykes, described as kimberlites or lamprosites

(Jensen & Secher, 2004), which have been investigated for diamond occurrences.

3.2 Chemistry

A report and data CD by Schjøth et al. (2004) contains a compilation of geoscientific

data from the area between 66 and 70.15 latitude, from a project concerning the

mineral potential of the area. Another report by Jensen et al. (2003) includes analyses of

heavy minerals from till and stream sediment samples collected by diamond exploration

companies.

For the ecosystems, the most important aspect is the availability of plant nutrients,

which is generally higher in the areas of sedimentary rocks and basalts than in the

gneiss areas. But nutrient content also varies over short distances. Terrain for example

affects nutrient availability, which is lower at hilltops, where nutrients are washed away,

than at the base of hills. The time since ice retreat, humidity, snow cover, permafrost

and humus content in the soil all affect soil fertility, along and in interaction with each

other, and thus determine the spatial distribution of plant species and communities and

ecosystem productivity (Jensen & Christensen, 2003).

3.3 Processes

3.3.1 Erosion

During the past ice ages there has been a substantial erosion of the valleys in Greenland,

which has created the many deep fiords, and there has been a transport of sediment and

cover rocks from land and coastal areas to the ocean (Bonow et al., 2007). However, a

large part of the ice sheets have probably been cold based and therefore non-erosive,

and therefore the erosion outside the valleys has been smaller. The erosion under an ice-

sheet depends on ice thickness, basal temperature and the shear strength of the

underlying material (Kelman & Hättestrand, 1999). The amount of erosion that has

happened since a land uplift in the late Neogene, 10 to 11 million years ago in the

Kangerlussuaq region varies from 500-1000 m in the valleys, even up to >1500 m in the

fiord, and 0-200 m in the areas between valleys. This is a result of the combination of

fluvial erosion in the periods before glaciations, and glacial erosion, which has been

strongest in the pre-existing valleys (Bonow et al., 2006).

Today glacial erosion continues in valleys with active glaciers. Some sediment is

transported to the sea, and some is deposited on land in the form of moraines. Creation

of moraines can be observed on series of aerial photographs (van Tatenhove, 1995).

Fluvial erosion is also an ongoing process in river valleys.

18

3.3.2 Earthquakes

Greenland is generally has a low level of seismic activity, but in 2003 Ekström et al.

reported a new type of earthquakes, called glacial earthquakes, which occur under large

glaciers and ice flows. These are caused by abrupt movements of large ice masses over

relatively short distances by stick-slip downhill sliding (Ekström et al., 2003). It

happens as the glacier moves forward that the basal ice gets stuck against the surface

beneath. This creates tension, and when it becomes too large the ice breaks loose from

the surface and moves forward fast, releasing the earthquake.

The duration of a glacial earthquake is typically 15-60 seconds, which is much longer

than for tectonic earthquakes of similar magnitude. They do not give the high frequency

seismic signal, know as the p-wave, which is normally used to detect earthquakes,

which is part of the reason they were not discovered earlier (Jørgensen et al., 2005).

From the period 1999-2001 analysis of the data from 100 seismometers worldwide

revealed 46 of these glacial earthquakes, 42 of them in Greenland (Ekström et al, 2003).

These had strengths of 4.7-5.1 on the Richter scale, which means they can be felt

locally, so another reason they were not detected was that they happen in uninhabited

areas, at the glaciers (Jørgensen et al., 2005). Smaller earthquakes could not be detected

from the global data, but a network of seismographs in Greenland should detect them

and locate epicentres (Jørgensen et al., 2005). A project at the Heimdal glacier near

Tassilaaq in east Greenland works at relating ice movements, detected by GPS stations

on the glacier, to seismological data, and thus contribute to a better understanding of the

phenomenon (Benarroch, 2006). This is relevant both to documenting the dynamics of

the Greenland ice sheet and to finding analogues to ice streams in the Scandinavian ice

sheet and understanding glacial landscape formation.

Glacial earthquakes happen all year round, but are most frequent in the late summer

months, whereas tectonic earthquakes do not show this annual variation (Ekström et al,

2006). This indicates a link to surface melting of the glacier ice, which means that the

frequency of glacial earthquakes is expected to increase if climate becomes warmer.

Indeed, a strong increase has been observed in recent years, with a doubling from 2002

to 2005 (Ekström et al., 2006).

Glacial earthquakes happen under the large glaciers and ice flows, especially in East

Greenland, Northwest Greenland and around Disko Bay, but have not been recorded in

the Kangerlussuaq region (Ekström et al., 2003; 2006).

19

4. SOIL

4.1 Common properties

In those areas of Greenland with basalt and sedimentary bedrock, soils are mostly

neutral-alkaline, whereas in the granite and gneiss bedrock areas (including most of

West Greenland), soils are more acidic, with measurements of soil pH usually in the

range from 4 to 6 (Fredskild, 1996). The most common soil types in West Greenland are

arctic brown soils, lithosols and upland and meadow tundra soils. Permafrost affects soil

formation, as the decomposition of organic matter by bacteria, fungi and detritus

feeding animals can only occur in the active layer above the permanently frozen depth

(See also section 5). Despite limiting decomposition, permafrost also hampers the

drainage of soils, so that the active layer in some places becomes waterlogged with

precipitation and meltwater. On sloping terrain the waterlogged soil can begin to flow

downhill, a process known as solifluction. It can be seen as characteristic patterns on the

ground (Jensen & Christensen, 2003). Movement of the soil as it thaws and freezes,

cryoturbation, also results in patterned ground, with hummocks or polygons, as seen

especially in the northern parts of Greenland.

Around Kangerlussuaq and in other arid inland areas the soils show layers of eolian

loess-like sediments, and pH typically ranges from 6-8. Acid soils are only found here

in this area in dwarf shrub heaths with moss layers (Fredskild, 1996).

4.2 Soil processes in the Kangerlussuaq region

Ozols and Broll (2005) have studied soil chemistry and processes in three different

vegetation types in areas by Mount Keglen in Sandflugtsdalen near Kangerlussuaq. The

level valley floor at the study sites is covered in till mixed with fluvial and eolian

sediments, and the soil texture is loam with coarse silt. Soil profiles and chemistry

compared for Kobresia myosuroides dominated meadow, and stands dominated by Salix

glauca and Betula nana respectively. The processes in the surface layers are driven

mainly by vegetation and eolian silt deposition.

Kobresia plants produce high amounts of below-ground biomass relative to their above-

ground biomass. This results in the formation of a rhizomull with a high content of

organic material and humus. Under Kobresia meadow stands the upper ca. 2 cm of the

soil is very dark, and enriched in organic carbon and nitrogen, with a high C/N ratio.

This type of soil is also found in grassland soils in other arctic, continental regions. The

formation of the stable humus layer in such soils is also favoured by the continual

deposition of small amounts of eolian sediment (Ozols and Broll, 2003).

Under the Betula nana dwarf shrub heath stands, decomposition is slow, because of low

soil moisture and the quality of Betula litter, which is rich in sklerencym, so they are not

easily crushed and incorporated in the soil, and in phenolic acids which acidify the

topsoils. This results in dystric or slightly podsolised soils.

Under the low Salix shrub stands decomposition is also relatively slow, but the leaves of

Salix are easily crushed and incorporated in the soil as fine particles by movements in

the soil caused by frost. This leads to a high organic content in the topsoil, which is

nutrient rich and biologically active (Ozols and Broll, 2003).

20

On slopes affected by solifluction or cryoturbation humic content is less, and the

organic layer is thinner than on less disturbed flat sites (Sieg et al., 2006).

4.3 Soil chemistry in the Kangerlussuaq region

The pH under Kobresia and Salix stands increases with depth over the top 8 cm of the

soil, and in relation to the gneissic parent material is relatively high, showing that

acidification is weak, as the content of plant remains prevents acidification and

leaching. Under Betula stands, on the other hand, there is a marked acidification of the

upper centimetres of the soil, because of organic acids from the litter. This also leads to

the cation exchange capacity (CEC) being lower in the Betula stands because of high

release of Al and Fe ions by leaching and weathering. The average equilibrium pore

solution of Fe is 3.8 mg l-1 under Betula, 2.0 mg l-1 under Kobresia and 0.9 mg l-1

under Salix stands. For Al the values are 2.3 mg l-1, 0.9 mg l-1 and 0.5 mg l-1

respectively.

Apart from vegetation type, nutrient content and CEC also depends on soil moisture,

being higher at the more moist sites. Leaching is reduced, even at the acidified Betula

sites, by the low precipitation in the region (Ozols and Broll, 2003).

21

5. PERMAFROST

5.1 Common properties and definition

Permafrost can be defined as soil or rock which is below 0 C throughout the year. By

some definitions, it must remain below 0 C for several years to be considered

permafrost, while soil that freezes during exceptionally cold winters and remain for one

or a few years are called pereletoks (Lunardini, 1995). The low temperature of course

often means that ice is usually present, except in nonporous bedrock. The ice can occur

in different forms, often as fillings in the pores of between grains in the soil, but it can

also form more massive bodies such as ice wedges and layers, which can be several

metres thick (Heginbottom, 2000). Above the permafrost is an active layer, a part of the

soil which thaws in summer, and were biological activity takes place. As you move

downwards, the annual variation in temperature decreases. The depth of zero annual

amplitude is another characteristic of the permafrost at a given site. It is often defined as

the depth where the annual variation is less than 0.1 C (van Tatenhove and Olesen,

1994). Further down still, the temperature gradually increases, until it reaches 0 C at

the base of the permafrost. The thickness of the permafrost at a given site depends on

the ground surface temperature (which again is determined by climate, topography,

snow cover and vegetation) and on the thermal properties of the soil. An example of a

temperature profile in permafrost is shown in figure 9.

Figure 9. An illustration of the range in temperatures experienced at different depths in

the ground during the year. The active layer (shown in grey) thaws each summer and

freezes each winter, while the permafrost layer remains below 0 °C all year. From the

webpage of the Geological Survey of Canada

(http://gsc.nrcan.gc.ca/permafrost/whatis_e.php).

22

Because the volume of ice is larger than of water, freezing and thawing causes

movement in ice rich soils. In decreases soil stability, so that solifluction can occur on

slopes, and it can result in the creation of polygonal patterns on flat ground.

5.2 Spatial variation

According to the circum-arctic map of permafrost and ground-ice (Brown et al., 1998;

Figure 10), Greenland can be divided into regions with continuous permafrost in the

north, discontinuous permafrost in middle latitudes along both coasts, and isolated

patches of permafrost extent in the southern parts (see figure 10). The limit of

continuous permafrost generally follows the -5 C mean annual thermocline (Funder,

1989). In all areas, the permafrost is characterised by low ground ice content (less than

10 % volume visible ice in the upper 10-20 m of the ground), thin overburden (<5-10

m) and exposed bedrock. This differs somewhat from the permafrost found in the

Scandes mountains, which often has a high or medium ice content (>10 %) (Brown et

al., 1998). According to Brown et al. (1998) there is no seafloor permafrost around

Greenland.

23

Figure 10. Permafrost regions in Greenland. Light beige: Continuous permafrost extent

with low ground ice content and thin overburden and exposed bedrock (clr); Yellow:

Discontinuous permafrost extent with low ground ice content and thin overburden and

exposed bedrock (dlr); Orange red: Isolated patches of permafrost extent with low

ground ice content and thin overburden and exposed bedrock (ilr); Blue: Glaciers and

ice sheet. Data from Brown et al., 1998.

Kangerlussuaq is located in the southern part of the area with continuous permafrost,

but close to the limit to discontinuous permafrost, which is found along the coast

(Brown et al., 1998; Weidick, 1968; Figure 10). van Tatenhove and Olesen (1994)

present temperature measurements of two profiles from Kangerlussuaq (18 m deep) and

Sisimiut (9 m deep), and for nine short (1.78 m) profiles in the area between

Kangerlussuaq and the ice sheet.

24

The longer cores showed that the thickness of the active layer at Kangerlussuaq, on the

flat, sand and silt terrace north of the airbase runway, was 1.7 m. on average over 9

years (minimum 1.17 m, maximum 2.30 m.) Thawing of the upper part starts at

snowmelt in the end of May, and reaches its maximum depth in October. The depth of

zero annual amplitude was ca. 15 m, and the temperature at that depth was -1.6 0.2 C.

At Sisimiut on the coast, on a site with a peat layer over sand overlaying a layer of

marine clay, the active layer is thicker, 2.33 m on average over 10 years. At 9 m. depth,

which corresponded to the level of zero annual amplitude, the temperature was -0.3

0.1 C.

The total depth of the permafrost at the two sites was not measured, but calculated based

on the measured temperature profiles and assumptions about the thermal properties of

the underlying strata, to 127 31 m at Kangerlussuaq, and 33 9 meters at Sisimiut. The

thinner permafrost and thicker active layer in Sisimiut is caused by higher annual

average air temperature and by the thicker snow cover in winter, which isolates the soil

from the cold winter air. Sisimiut is in the region with discontinuous permafrost,

whereas permafrost around Kangerlussuaq is continuous. Further North in West

Greenland, at Paakitsoq just north of Ilulisat, the permafrost thickness at the edge of the

inland ice sheet has been meassured as part of a project concerning problems of

permafrost in relation to hydropower (Kern-Hansen, 1990). This area is in some ways

similar to Kangerlussuaq in having a continental climate and low precipitation, but the

annual mean temperature and especially the winter temperature is lower here. Seven

boreholes were drilled in 1984-86, the deepest being 250 m. To total depth of the

permafrost here was 215 2 m (van Tatenhove and Olesen, 1994), while the level of

zero annual amplitude was at about 15 m depth where the temperature was -4 C (Kern-

Hansen, 1990).

The thickness of the active layer also varies over short distances depending on snow

cover, drainage, soil type, organic layer thickness and vegetation (Woolfe et al, 2008).

van Tatenhove and Olesen (1994) observed variations with soil and vegetation type in

the area between Kangerlussuaq and the ice sheet. In a poorly drained site with a thick

moss layer over an ice wedge there was an active layer of 0.26 m. On flat sites with a

continuous vegetation of grasses and low shrubs, the active layer was 0.67 to 0.77 m

thick. Sandy and gravely surfaces discontinuous vegetation, the active layer was up to

2.5 m thick. At the sand sheet in Sandflugtsdalen, permafrost has been found at a depth

of 1.25-1.70 cm (Dijkmans & Törnqvist, 1991).

Lunardini (1995) has calculated, using models of heat transfer in soil, and assumptions

about past temperatures from northern Canada, that initial growth of permafrost after an

ice sheet retreats is fast during the first years, but then the growth becomes slower and

permafrost thickness approaches steady state asymptotically over very long periods. A

600 m think permafrost can, according to these calculations, form within 50.000 years,

while 1500 m thick permafrost, which has been found in eastern Siberia, requires the

whole Quaternary to form.

25

5.3 Permafrost structures near Kangerlussuaq

Patterned ground is common in places around Kangerlussuaq, although some of it is no

longer active (Ozols and Broll, 2003). It was probably formed during the mid Holocene

warm period when the area may have been in the border area between continuous and

discontinuous permafrost, where frost mounds are most commonly found (Funder,

1989).

An active pingo has been found 200 m west of the present ice margin in front of the

Leverett glacier (Scholz & Baumann, 1997). It is a cone shaped hill containing an ice

lens. It is 15-20 m high and 60-70 m in diameter. On the summit there is a crater-like

depression with a spring, and on the upper part of the slopes are radially orientated

erosion furrows. The spring is not meltwater, but highly mineralised groundwater (Ca-

Mg-HCO3-SO4-Cl type water) with high bromide, chloride and sulphate content

probably originating from deep seated faults in the crystalline rock below the

permafrost. The Leverett glacier valley is on a major fault system which is the boundary

between the Nassugtoqidian belt to the north and the Archaean block to the south. The

chemical composition, and the fact that it is capable of penetrating the permafrost, also

indicates that the water is of thermal (>20 C) origin (Scholz & Baumann, 1997). The

pingo has formed as the water, rising under pressure through the permafrost, freezes

within the deposits on the valley floor in front of the glacier. The growth of the ice core

then pushes the sediment upwards in a cone shape. The occurrence of the crater and

furrows on the top of the cone indicate that in time, the sedimentary cover may erode

away, leaving the ice core bare. It will then gradually melt, leading to the collapse of the

pingo (Scholz & Baumann, 1997).

26

27

6. GLACIAL ENVIRONMENT

6.1 The Greenland ice sheet

Greenland has a general bowl shape with peripheral mountainous areas surrounding a

central basin that extends below sea level. The Greenland Ice Sheet covers this central

basin, and also much of the fringing mountains and in places pushes to the coast where

it calves into the sea (Funder, 1989). The drainage divide of the ice sheet runs near the

eastern margin, so that most of the inland ice flows towards the west, and only small

parts flow eastwards. Much of the outlet of ice happens from calving glaciers in the

Disko Bay, where the icebergs flow into Baffin Bay. The largest single outlet is the

Ilulisat glacier, which produces icebergs corresponding to 25 km3 of water annually

(Funder, 1989).

The Greenland ice sheet has important impact on the climate in the entire Northern

hemisphere, because of its high elevation and north-south orientation affects the main

mean westerly atmospheric circulation (Ahlstrøm, 2003). If the Greenland ice sheet was

to melt completely, it would cause the mean sea level to rise by more than 6 meters

(Church et al., 2001). It contains approximately 9 % of all the fresh water on Earth

(Jensen & Christensen, 2003).

Apart from the Greenland ice sheet, there are also ca. 20 000 local ice caps and glaciers

in Greenland, 5000 of them in West Greenland (Ahlstrøm et al., 2007). On one of them,

the Amitsulôq ice cap, approximately 200 km. south of Kangerlussuaq, ice mass

balance was monitored in the period 1981-1990. The results showed that the summer

melt of ice was more determining for the total mass balance of the local ice cap than the

winter balance between ablation and precipitation. This is probably also true for the

nearby Greenland ice sheet margin in this region. Summer meltoff is also more

important for water discharge in the regions river systems (Ahlstrøm et al., 2007).

6.2 Glaciation history

Evidence from sea shelf areas surrounding Greenland indicates that an early glaciation

occurred near the end of the Pliocene, about 2.4 million years ago, which was more

extensive than any succeeding glaciation. Several areas also contain records of a

Quaternary glaciation which occurred prior to the last interglacial. This is tentatively

referred to the Illinoian (Funder, 1989). From the last interglacial period, no terrestrial

deposits have been found, but there are records of subarctic marine fossils that occur

near to or farther north than similar faunas do at present, indicating that the last

interglacial was as warm as or a little warmer than the present.

The ice-free areas of Greenland record only one main ice advance during the last ice

age, after ca. 40 Ka (Funder, 1989). During the last glacial maximum the ice edge was

located beyond the present coast line along most of the western coast of Greenland

(Funder, 1989), and possibly reached the edge of the shelf, as it did in south Greenland

(Bennike & Björck, 2002). However, the distribution of some mosses and other plants

indicate that there may have been ice free refugia in the area around Disko Bay

(Fredskild, 1996). Despite the fact that the ice sheet extended beyond the current coast,

it was still land based, because the sea level was eustatically lowered (Funder, 1989).

28

The meltoff started around 14.000 years ago, and around 11.000 to 10.000 years ago

during the so-called Tassergat stade the ice margin was very near the current coastline

along most of the west coast, which indicates that the retreat was driven partly by

probably triggered by a eustatic sea level rise which made the shelf based parts of the

ice sheet unstable (Funder, 1989). 9500 years ago the ice margin retreated within the

present coastline between Sisimiut and Kangerlussuaq, where a moraine system from

this period can be seen. At around 8700 BP a new glacial advance created new moraine

systems. After that, meltoff was quite fast; by ca 8000 BP the inner part of the fiord

system was free of ice (Funder, 1989), and 6000 years ago all of the Kangerlussuaq

region and the present ice margin were free of ice (Van Tatenhove 1995). The mean

recession rate calculated from the available 14

C dates in central west Greenland was 50-

60 m yr-1, which is slower than in many other parts of Greenland, probably because it

happened through ablation rather than calving, due to topography of the region, with

long, narrow fiords (Bennike & Björck, 2002).

Around 3000 BP the ice started advancing again, and reached it maximum extent about

100-200 years ago, after which it has retreated at most places. However, in some places

in the region the ice is still advancing slightly (unpublished excursion guide).

The Holocene history is covered in more detail in the SKB report by Stefan Engels.

6.3 Glacial processes

Knight et al. (1994) studied the stratigraphy and characteristics of the ice at the ice

margin near Kangerlussuaq, especially at the Russel and Leverett glaciers. The ice

generally has a stratigraphy where the bottom layer, up to 5 m thick consists of frozen

till, old snow and laminated ice/debris layers. This material is incorporated in the ice

very close to the margin by overriding of proglacial material and by freezing-on of

sediment and water to the base.

Over this is an up to 20 m thick banded facies with bands of debris and layers of cleaner

ice, and/or a facies of ice with clots of debris. Both of these are produced by subglacial

erosion, but the distribution of the particle size in the banded and clotted types show

that the clots form in a closed subglacial environment, where all the material is

incorporated in the glacier, whereas the bands form nearer the ice margin where the fine

particles are washed away by meltwater (Knight et al., 1994). In the interior of the ice

sheet, the ice generally becomes cleaner but less transparent towards the top, as the size

of debris clots decrease, while the size and number of air bubbles increase. This pattern

is also seen at the ice margin in places where there is no basal melting. Where there is

basal melting, particularly at glacier lobes where subglacial meltwater is present, the

lower ice layers are lost, resulting in smaller clots than expected at the base of the ice

margin. Where ice is diverted around topographical barriers the clot size distribution is

also affected, as the lower layers are funnelled into ice lobes, while only the higher

remain at the interlobate margin. Together these two effects result in the thickest basal

ice and largest clots being found somewhere between the glacier snout and the interlobe

apex (Knight et al., 1994). The increased flow of ice around hills provides a feedback

loop where ice sheets deepen already existing depressions (Knight et al., 1994).

29

Another characteristic process at the ice margin is the occurrence of the so-called

jökullaups, which is an Icelandic word for the catastrophic floods which happen when

ice dammed water bodies drain suddenly (Tweed, 2000). A common mechanism for the

drainage is flotation of the retaining ice dam. Lake level rises until it reaches a depth

which makes the dam float, and then drains under the ice. Clean glacier ice has a density

of about 0.9 g cm-3, which should mean flotation with a water level of ca. 90 % of the

height of the dam (Tweed, 2000). However, a content of rock debris in the ice increases

the density, and thus the water depth required before flotation, and hence leads to a

larger water volume of outbursts. If the debris content is high the ice density may be

higher than that of the water, and the lake cannot drain through flotation, but may

instead flow over the dam or cause it to break (Tweed, 2000).

There are several ice dammed lakes in the Kangerlussuaq area, which drain at more or

less regular intervals. Very large water volumes can be released in the jökullaups, for

example 36*106 m3 of water drained in 36 hours from a lake by the Russel glacier in

August 1987 (Russel 1989). The same lake had also been observed to drain in 1974,

1982 and in July 1984, where 22*106 m3 drained in 19 hours (Sugden et al., 1985). The

drainage of a smaller lake, also by the Russel glacier was observed at close hand in

1988. Within a five hour period 3.3*105 m3

drained, and for the peak 40 minute period

the discharge was ca. 19 m3 pr second, through a tunnel with a 6 m diameter. This

resulted in the collapse of moraine ridges, ice shearing around the tunnel mouth, a rapid

incision of the lake bed and transport of lake material into the glacier (Russel et al.,

1990). Jökullaups affect the ice-margin dynamics, for example by undercutting ice cliffs

(Sugden et al., 1985) and the timing relative to melt season is likely to affect the water

pressure in the subglacial drainage network, the configuration of this network, and the

location of crevasses (Russel et al., 1989). Ice blocks derived from the lake basin,

subglacial tunnels or from undercutting of the ice margin are carried by the flood and

may become grounded on higher relief areas of the proximal outwash plain. They then

form obstacles to the flow of the water, which produces localised flow acceleration and

leads to the formation of scour marks, typically with a u-shaped hollow in front and on

the sides of the obstacle where material is eroded, and sometimes a ridge on the

downstream side (Russel, 1993). This can in turn lead to changes in the overall channel

system on the outwash plain (Russel, 1993).

30

Figure 11. Ice dammed lake by the Russel glacier. Photo by Dorthe Pedersen.

6.4 Glacial geomorphology in west Greenland and the Kangerlussuaq region

In most areas of west Greenland the last glaciation resulted in erosion, and not in

sediment accumulation. Glacial deposits are mostly restricted to valleys and lowlands.

Sandy and gravel rich meltout till is the most widespread deposit, and can form a

continuous cover in the lowlands towards the current ice margin. Lateral and terminal

moraines made up of thicker till deposits form zones parallel to the ice margin. The

valley floors are covered by glaciofluvial and fluvial deposits, occurring as terraces and

outwash plains. Glaciofluvial sand can also be found as kame terraces along valley

sides, deposited in a proglacial environment. Subglacial deposits like eskers are rare.

The ice marginal deposits in central west Greenland has been mapped by Weidick

(1968) and Ten Brink (1975), who dated them relative to former changes in sea level.

From Tasersiaq Lake to Ørkendalen, there is a 5-15 km wide belt where bedrock is

mostly overlaid by thick till deposits with close lying moraine ridges parallel to the

current ice margin. The area from Kangerlussuaq itself towards Sandflugtsdalen has

moraines as well as marine terraces of clay with shells, and came terraces consisting of

coarse gravel with boulders. The moraine is in places cut by river terraces 15 to 30 m

above the present river level (Weidick, 1968). The central part of Sandflugtsdalen is

filled with a ca. 100 m thick layer of Holocene sand and gravel, but in narrower parts

the bedrock is exposed. It is a characteristic subaerial ice margin environment (van

31

Tatenhove, 1995). From Sandflugtsdalen, lowland with similarly well developed

moraines stretches ca 100 km further to the north (Ten Brink, 1975).

Van Tatenhove (1995) carried out a more detailed mapping and dating of the moraine

systems in the area between Kangerlussuaq airport and the present ice margin. Over a

35 km long transect in Sandflugtsdalen, 181 positions of the ice margin could be

reconstructed from the occurrence of frontal and lateral moraines from the period 7900-

6500 14

C years B.P. The many, close lying moraines show that ice-marginal deposition

occurred almost continuously throughout this period. The volume of the moraines was

usually small, (defined as less than 162 m3). Moraines of similar sizes have been

observed to form at the present ice margin by comparing aerial photographs from 1948

and 1963. This was a period with slightly higher temperatures between colder periods,

which is also reflected in the 18O record from the GISP2 ice core. The older 18O

record from the GRIP ice core show many similar short term variations in the period

when the moraines in Sandflugtsdalen were formed. Thus, it seems likely that they

formed as a result of short term fluctuations in temperature, most likely as a result of

short (1-30 year) periods of ice advance followed by longer periods of retreat (van

Tatenhove, 1995).

Figure 12. Glacier with end moraine near Kangerlussuaq. Photo by Dorthe Pedersen.

The ice marginal deposits are clustered together in moraine systems, the locations of

which are probably determined by topographical barriers in the bedrock. There is one

system near Mount Keglen, which was dated to 7500-6500 14

C years B.P. When the ice

started to retreat, the sea invaded beyond the present shore and created marine terraces

at the head of the fiord. The maximum sea level was around 25-35 m above present

(Weidick, 1968). After 4000 years B.P. the sea level was close to present (Weidick,

1993).

32

The Ørkendalen moraine system 1-2 km from the present ice margin was dated to 6200-

5600 years B.P. (van Tatenhove, 1995). Moraine systems of similar ages are found near

the ice margin in the Ilulisat and Disko Bay area and near Ivigtut/Narssaq (Weidick

1993). After this period, the ice retreated beyond the present margin during the mid-

Holocene climatic optimum. How far it retreated is unknown, but it may well have been

tens of km (van Tatenhove, 1995).

6.5 Eolian deposits

In the valleys east of Kangerlussuaq, Sandflugtsdalen and Ørkendalen, Dijkmans and

Törnqvist (1991) have studied eolian deposits. Active, cold climate eolian systems are

otherwise rare, but can provide insights into relic inland dunes, eolian sand sheets and

loess deposits in Europe which were created under periglacial conditions in the past.

Ørkendalen is a broad valley with a 1-2 km wide river system, while Sandflugtsdalen

has a wide eastern part with the river incised into 5-10 m high terraces, and a narrow

western part where the river flows through a gorge. Both valleys have eolian sand sheets

on the north sides of the wide part of the valleys (Dijkmans and Törnqvist, 1991). Sand

is transported from the flood plains to the northwest onto the sides of the valleys.

Furthermore, eolian silt deposits occurs widely as a thin cover over moraine material

and bedrock between Kangerlussuaq and the ice sheet, giving rise to less acid soils than

expected from the bedrock type (Fredskild, 1996). Much of the sand and silt was

probably brought to the area in the period where the ice margin had retreated some

distance beyond the present position (van Tatenhove, 1995).

Figure 13. Sand sheet in Ørkendalen. Photo by Dorthe Pedersen.

33

7. LAND ECOSYSTEMS

7.1 Common properties

Almost all of Greenland’s land area is in the Arctic zone- only a small area inland in

South Greenland can be characterised as Subarctic, with a milder climate and woodland

vegetation. As in all arctic regions, the physical conditions like temperature, moisture,

soil etc. play a very dominant role in determining the distribution of species and their

biomass etc., whereas competition between species plays a relatively smaller role than

in more southern ecosystems. Yearly photosynthetic production in Greenland is low

compared to areas further south because of the low temperatures and short growing

season (Jensen & Christensen, 2003).

As virtually all of the land area of Greenland was covered by ice during the last ice age,

the terrestrial species found in Greenland today, both plants and animals, have

immigrated since the ice age from either North America or Europe. The difficulties in

colonising the island for different groups of organisms have been a determining factor

for the composition of the present day flora and fauna (Jensen & Christensen, 2003).

7.2 Vegetation

There are around 500 species of seed plants and Pteridophytes in Greenland. A map of

the bioclimatic zonation of vegetation has been created as part of the Circumpolar

Arctic Vegetation Mapping project (Daniels and Wilhelm, 2001; CAMV team 2003;

Figure 14). Along the north coast is a narrow belt belonging to the Arctic herb zone,

where there is a lot of bare soil, and a low cover of vascular plants (<5 %), mosses and

lichens. Inland North Greenland belongs to the Northern Arctic dwarf shrub zone

(Daniels and Wilhelm, 2001); with a slightly higher plant cover (5-25 %) dominated by

dwarf shrubs with a prostrate growth form (CAMV team 2003). Northwest Greenland,

and the northern half of the east coast is in the Middle Arctic dwarf shrub zone, which

typically has a patchy vegetation of mosses and prostrate or hemi prostrate dwarf shrubs

(5-50 % cover). The southern part of the east coast, and much of coastal areas in the

west belong to the Southern Arctic dwarf shrub zone, with a still higher plant cover (50-

80 %) dominated by erect dwarf shrubs with some herbs and an underlayer of moss.

Further inland in central east and west Greenland is the Arctic shrub zone, where there

is often a closed canopy (80-100 % cover) of erect dwarf shrubs and shrubs such as

Willows (Salix sp.), over a thick layer of moss. In the far south is an enclave of

subarctic vegetation, with low forest of Birch (Betula pubescens), Rowan (Sorbus

groenlandica) and Alder (Alnus crispa). This description of vegetation however, is only

valid for lowland, relatively flat, drained sites (so-called zonal vegetation, because it is

this vegetation that defines the vegetation zones). On mountains, slopes, snowbeds and

bog etc. the vegetation can be very different (Sieg et al, 2006).

34

Bioclimatic zones

Ice sheet

Arctic herb zone

Northern Arctic dwarf-shrub zone

Middle Arctic dwarf-shrub zone

Southern Arctic dwarf-shrub zone

Arctic shrub zone

Subarctic

Figure 14. Bioclimatic zones in Greenland from the Circumpolar Arctic Vegetation

Mapping project (CAMV team 2003).

Foersom et al. (1982) describe some of the most common vegetation communities in

Greenland. At the bottom of the large fiords and close to the ice cap, dwarf shrub

heathlands dominated by Dwarf Birch (Betula nana) are common. Where the snow

cover is longer, Betula nana/Ledum palustre (Narrow-leafed Labrador-tea) heathlands

dominate. In both types Empetrum nigrum (Crowberry), Vaccinium uliginosum (Arctic

Blueberry) and Phyllodoce coerulea (Blue Mountain-heath) are also common, but they

do not dominate, as they often do in coastal areas.

Salix shrubs, especially Salix glauca (greyleaf willow), occur in the bottom of valleys

and on south facing slopes in the Arctic Shrub Zone. In places with snow cover in

winter, but rather early snow melt, very species rich herb communities occur. On

nutrient rich soil there are many forbs, and poorer soil grasses and sedges are more

dominant.

In places that are covered with snow until late in the year, the vegetation is dominated

by liverworts and mosses. Dwarf shrubs or herbs that grow in the snow fields have poor

growing conditions, and as a result are usually very small. On exposed areas, especially

without snow cover in winter, the vegetation can be very sparse. Lichens are most

common in such places. On slopes with clay rich soils, soil slides are common, and only

few plants, such as some species of Draba (Draba) can survive. On dry, sandy or

gravely locations inland, steppe like vegetation is found, with plants like Kobresia

35

myosuroides (Bellardi bog sedge), Calamagrostis purpurascens (purple reedgrass),

Carex supina (weak arctic sedge) and Carex rupestris (curly sedge).

7.2.1 Vegetation in the Kangerlussuaq region

The vegetation in West Greenland is fairly well explored (Fredskild, 1996), by among

others Böcher (1954; 1959; 1963); Fredskild & Holt (1993) and Vestergård (1978).

These studies and yearly GBS (Greenland Botanical Survey) reports are summarised by

Fredskild, 1996. After that, Sieg et al. (2006) have studied the altitudinal zonation of

vegetation in the Kangerlussuaq area and in the Angujârtorfik area 50 km further to the

south west, using phytosociological methods, as part of the AZV project (Altitudinal

Zonation of Vegetation in continental west Greenland). The following description is

mainly based on these. Sieg et al. (2006) distinguised three altitudinal vegetation belts,

0-400 m.a.s.l.; 400-800 m.a.s.l and above 800 m.a.s.l. The high elevation belt was

mostly found in the Angujârtorfik area, not near Kangerlussuaq itself. The distribution

of plant species, and differentiation of the vegetation belts is not determined only by

temperature, but also by factors like wind exposure, cryoturbation and solifluction,

humidity, snow cover and competition among species.

In the Kangerlussuaq area erect dwarf shrub heaths are the dominant vegetation

(Fredskild, 1996). Both the low- and mid altitude belts are dominated by Betula nana

with Cassiope tetragona (white arctic mountain heather), Empetrum nigrum, and

Vaccinium uliginosum as well as some herbs like Kobresia myosuroides, Pedicularis

lapponica (Lapland lousewort) and Pyrola grandiflora (Large-flowered Wintergreen).

These occur in mesic sites with acidic, humus rich soils. Heath vegetation dominated by

Betula nana and Ledum palustre, with a high cover of Sphagnum species and other

bryophytes, occurs in moister and more humus rich sites on north facing slopes, where

there is constant snow cover in winter. In places that a slightly more mesic (for example

because the slope is steeper), there are also many species of lichens. Steeper slopes are

affected by solifluction, and the vascular plants are often very small due to the

unfavourable conditions.

Another heath-type, dominated by Cassiope tetragona, occurs at generally higher

altitude sites (usually above 550 m.a.s.l.) with snow cover, which a typically affected by

solifluction or cryoturbation. They contain some snowbed plants (Luzula arctica (arctic

woodrush), Salix herbacea (snowbed willow) etc) as well as lichens and bryophytes,

which are favoured by the reduced competition from dwarf shrubs caused by the

frequent disturbance. These sites a very species rich, especially concerning cryptogams.

Where pH is higher, some basiophilous species, like Dryas integrifolia (Entire-leafed

Mountains Avens), and Rhododendron lapponicum (Lapland Rose-bay) and the moss

Hypnum revolutum can occur in the Cassiope heaths. pH is often raised by base

enrichment due to cryoturbation.

On wind exposed, dry sites heath vegetation dominated by Empetrum nigrum ssp.

hermaphroditum and Betula nana, with some grasses and herbs, and relatively low

bryophyte cover.

Actual shrub-vegetation with Salix glauca is restricted to low altitudes. The mean height

of the vegetation is 1 m but single shrubs can be up to 4 m high. Shrubs vegetation

36

occurs on south facing slopes, on level, dry ground, such as on the high river terraces in

the Kangerlussuaq area, and along rivers. On the south facing slopes it occurs with

steppe species like Artemisia borealis (field sagewort), Calamagrostis purpurascens

and others. On level ground the understory consists mainly of Betula nana, Empetrum

nigrum, Vaccinium uliginosum and Calamagrostis lapponica (Lapland reedgrass).

There are some southern species, favoured by the milder climate in the Salix stands.

Cryptogams are rare, and the species number low. On riparian sites Salix shrub occurs

with mosses of the genus Plagiomnium, and plants of moist, disturbed sites, like

Equisetum arvense (common horsetail) and Polygonum viviparum (alpine bistort).

Figure 15. Heathland plants from Kangerlussuaq. A: Betulan nana. B: Vaccinium

uliginosum. C: Pyrola grandiflora. D: Ledum palustre. E: Dryas integrifolia. F:

Rhododendron lapponicum. Photos by Dorthe Pedersen

37

In north facing sites with a shallow active layer, Salix glauca forms dwarf shrub

vegetation (<50 cm high), which is rich in cryptogam species, like the other types of

dwarf shrub heaths. On south facing slopes or flat areas with thin, loess-like soils, which

a more base rich than other soils in the area, there is a steppe like vegetation dominated

by Kobresia myosuroides and Carex supina. Grasses like Calamagrostis purpurascens,

Poa glauca (glaucous bluegrass) and others are frequent, and forbs like Potentilla

hookeriana (Hooker's cinquefoil), Artemisia borealis and Campanula gieseckiana

(common harebell) occur sporadically. Kobresia myosuroides is very tolerant of low

snow cover and drifting snow in winter, making it successful on wind exposed sites

(Ozols and Broll, 2003).

Figure 16. Plants from Kangerlussuaq. A: Salix glauca. B: Draba glabella. C:

Campanula giesekiana. D: Equisetum arvense. Photos by Dorthe Pedersen.

At mid altitudes snowbed communities begin to occur at sites with prolonged snow

cover. These sites have a short growing season, low summer temperatures and high

humidity. Snowbed communities are rare around Kangerlussuaq, because of the low

precipitation, but found more commonly closer to the coast and at higher altitudes (Sieg

et al., 2006).

The difference between the mid- and high altitude belts is more pronounced than

between low- and mid altitude, with a change in dominant vegetation type from erect

dwarf shrub communities to communities dominated by prostrate dwarf shrubs and by

gramminoids like Carex bigelowii (Bigelow's sedge), Luzula confusa (northern

38

woodrush) and Poa pratensis/arctica (Kentucky/arctic bluegrass). Some herbs are

indicator species for high elevation, like Potentilla hyparctica (arctic cinquefoil) and

Cardamine bellidifolia (alpine bittercress). Cryptogams play a large role. Gramminoid

dominated stands cover large areas on north facing slopes, on acidic, relatively humus

rich soils. Carex bigelowii dominate on the less steep slopes, whereas Poa

pratensis/arctica and Luzula confusa dominate on steep slopes, where solifluction

damages the rhizomes of Carex and the roots of dwarf shrubs, and thus favours tuft-

forming species and a vegetation resembling polar semidesert (Sieg et al., 2006).

The temporal variation in terrestrial vegetation during the Holocene has been studied at

a number of sites in West Greenland using pollen and plant macrofossils (Fredskild,

1996). This will be described in the SKB report by Stefan Engels.

7.3 Fauna

There are four wild terrestrial herbivorous mammals in Greenland: muskoxen (Ovibos

moschatus), caribou (Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus), arctic hare (Lepus arcticus) and

lemming (Dicrostonyx groenlandicus) (Jensen & Christensen, 2003).

Caribou occur along much of the west coast and are common in the Kangerlussuaq area.

Their diet consists mainly grasses and sedges in the summer, with the addition of lichen

in the winter (Jensen & Christensen, 2003). The caribou have no natural predators in

West Greenland, but are hunted by people. In South Greenland, around Nuuk and near

Disko bay there are introduced domesticated reindeer (Rangifer tarandus tarandus)

instead of wild caribou (Jensen & Christensen, 2003).

Cuyler et al. (2005) report on the Kangerlussuaq-Sisimiut caribou population size, age

and gender structure and calf recruitment, based on extensive surveys carried out from

helicopter in March 2005. It was estimated that there were ca. 90500 caribou in the

region, with densities varying across the region from 2.3 to 6.2 animals pr km2. This

number is a conservative estimate, considering the difficulty of surveying caribou in

such a large area. It far exceeds any previously reported population estimates (see figure

17), although comparisons between years must be considered with some caution, as

they are based on different survey methods.

39

Caribou population estimates

0

20,000

40,000

60,000

80,000

100,000

120,000

140,000

160,000

1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005

Kangerlussuaq

Greenland total

Figure 17. Available estimated of caribou population in the Kangerlussuaq-Sisimiut

region and in Greenland as a whole. Data from Cuyler et al., 2005.

The caribou population also exceeds the number which has been estimated as the

maximum sustainable population in the region, which is 31200 animals (1.2 pr km2).

The high population leads to density dependant effects caused by intraspecific

competition, overgrazing and trampling of the vegetation etc. The annual recruitment in

the caribou population in 2005 was 16 calves per 100 cows (Cuyler et al., 2005). This is

very low compared to populations in North America and Scandinavia, and these

populations often have natural predators, unlike the one near Kangerlussuaq. There are

no studies of the fecundity of the females, but a cause high calf mortality related to high

population density is faeces contamination of the feeding areas, which leads to

diarrhoea in calves when they start taking in other food than milk. Shortage of food

resources because of competition, overgrazing and trampling may also lead to problems

for the caribou bulls, as they need to build up large reserves before the mating season,

where they do not eat much and spend a lot of energy. This could be the cause of the

low bull to cow ration in the Kangerlussuaq-Sisimiut population, which is only 1:3

(Cuyler et al., 2005). Selective hunting of the bulls is also a possible cause, and this is

common in Greenland, but the hunting harvest in recent years has not been large enough

to explain the pattern observed alone. It is feared that the caribou population may at

some point crash, as it has done several times in the past, if it remains unchecked. Since

2000 the number of licences to shoot caribou and the length of the hunting season has

both been increased, but the number of caribou shot was obviously not enough to

stabilise or decrease the population between 2000 and 2005.

Muskoxen occur naturally in North and East Greenland and were introduced to the

Kangerlussuaq area in 1962, where the population increased fast. The were 27 animals

in 1965, and ca. 4000 in 1993. From Kangerlussuaq Muskoxen have since been

introduced to other areas in West Greenland, where they also thrive (Jensen &

Christensen, 2003).

40

Both muskox and caribou seek out special calving areas in the spring, and are more

sensitive to human disturbance during the calving season than the rest of the year.

Figure 18. Caribou in Kangerlussuaq. Photo by Dorthe Pedersen.

Figure 19. Muskox bull near Kangerlussuaq. Photo by Dorthe Pedersen.

41

Lemming are common in North Greenland, where they play a key role as food for many

predators, like arctic fox (Alopex lagopus), ermine (Mustela erminea), snowy owl

(Nyctea scandiaca), Arctic Skua (Stercorarius parasiticus) raven (Corvus corax),

peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus), and by the arctic wolf (Canis lupus), which has

been extinct from Greenland but re-immigrated to North and Northeast Greenland in

recent years, although it is unknown whether it breeds in Greenland (Jensen &

Christensen, 2003).

Arctic fox occurs all over the country, but in two different races. White foxes occur in

Northeast Greenland, where they hunt mainly lemming, and therefore have a population

size that varies with the lemming cycles, and Blue foxes live in the coastal zone of the

rest of Greenland, which has a more diverse diet, and therefore more stable population

size (Jensen & Christensen, 2003).

Apart from the mammal herbivores, birds like geese, grouse and some ducks are also

grazers. Among the arthropods there are also some herbivores, such as butterfly larvae,

aphids, seed bugs and some beetle larvae. Some butterfly larvae can become very

abundant in certain years and be a pest on hay crops in South Greenland, but generally

insects do not consume more than a few percent of the terrestrial primary production

(Jensen & Christensen, 2003). Pollen and nectar on the other hand plays an important

role for many insects, and they in turn are important to the plants as pollinators (Phillip

et al., 1990). Most arthropods in Greenland, however, are detritus feeders in the soil and

water, and are very important for the decomposition of organic matter. These include

beetle mites, springtails and insect larvae like mites and mosquitoes. There can be 0.2-

1.0 million springtail pr m2 in some arctic soils, and around 27000 midge larvae pr m

2

in especially lush ponds, but other arthropods occur at much lower densities (Jensen &

Christensen, 2003). Midges and mosquitoes are important food for many land living and

wading birds, and even for arctic fox.

Boertman et al., 1996, summarised the available information on sea bird colonies in

Western Greenland. They map 1032 colonies. In these, ca. 1 million birds of 19

different species breed. In addition to this, there is ca. 20 million little auk (Alle alle)

breeding at Avernasuaq. The next most common species are Brünnich’s guillemot or

thick-billed murre (Uria lomvia), northern fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis), kittiwake (Rissa

tridactyla) and eider (Somateria mollissima). Along the fiord Kangerlussuaq there are

only four recorded sea bird colonies, one with Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo),

and three with Iceland Gull (Larus glaucoides). Along the outer coast there are many

colonies, but they tend not to be very big in this part of the country (Boertman et al.,

1996).

The wild fauna, both terrestrial and marine, contributes significantly to the food

production of the Greenland society, with 7000 tons of meat every year, while sheep

farming provides another 250 tons of meat pr year (Hansen, 2002). See more on food

production in chapter 12.

7.4 Wetlands

In Greenland, bogs with Sphagnum species and other mosses occur on very wet areas.

Eriophorum angustifolium (tall cottongrass) grows in tussock on the bogs, where some

42

dwarf shrubs also thrive (Foersom et al., 1982). The shores of salt lakes are often

surrounded by plants that also grow along the coast, such as Puccinellia phryganodes

(creeping alkaligrass) (Foersom et al., 1982).

Figure 20. Eriophorum scheuchzeri. Photo by Dorthe Pedersen.

In the Kangerlussuaq area, fens are restricted to the shores of lakes and ponds, and are

dominated by Eriophorum angustifolium, E. shceuchzeri (arctic cotton-grass), Carex

rariflora (looseflower alpine sedge) and Calamagrostis neglecta (slimstem reedgrass),

and areas that dry out in the summer are dominated by Calamagrostis lapponica

(Fredskild, 1996).

There is a marked difference in vegetation composition and species diversity between

base rich fens (mean pH 6.3) and more acid fens (mean pH 5.4) (Sieg et al, 2006). The

acidity of fens is determined mainly by the bedrock of the fens water catchment area,

with base rich fens in regions with sedimentary or basalt bedrock and acidic fens in

gneiss areas. But influx from aeolian deposits may also create a more base rich

environment locally. The mean species richness in the base rich fens was 32, in the

acidophytic fens 15. Species like Euphrasia frigida (Scandinavian Eyebright), Juncus

castaneus (chestnut rush), J. triglumis (three-hulled rush), Kobresia simpliciusculla

(simple bog sedge), Pinguiculla vulgaris (common butterwort) and Saxifraga aizoides

(yellow mountain saxifrage) are restricted to base rich fen. Some stands in base rich fen

are transitional to salt-march vegetation, with Carex maritima (curved sedge),

Lomatogonium rotatum (marsh fellwort) and Triglochin palustris (marsh arrowgrass).

43

The acidophytic fen vegetation types are characterised by dominance of Carex saxatilis

(rock sedge) on windward, steep lake shores, or Carex rariflora on leeward, shallow

lake shores. Other common species in the acidophytic fens include Calamagrostis

neglecta, Eriophorum angustifolium and Salix arctophila (northern willow). Apart from

pH and nutrient availability, the species composition is determined by wind exposure,

and on weather a peat layer is developed or mineral soil is exposed.

44

45

8. LAKES AND PONDS

8.1 Common properties

The species composition and productivity of lakes depend on because of climatic

variations, lake chemistry and nutrient availability. All standing fresh water in

Greenland freezes in winter. Ponds freeze to the bottom, while lakes by definition do

not (Jensen & Christensen, 2003).

In dry, continental regions of Greenland, such as the Kangerlussuaq area, there are lakes

without flow-through which are saline with high conductivity (above 3000 μS cm-1;

Fredskild, 1996), because of the low precipitation. The salinity reflects the balance

between evaporation, precipitation and temperature. The lakes receive meltwater that

contains salts eroded from the bedrock by the ice, and if evaporation is higher than

precipitation the concentration of these increases Jensen & Christensen, 2003). The

Greenland salt lakes are generally less saline than salt lakes elsewhere in the world,

including the Canadian High Arctic (Williams, 1991). The dominant cations in the lakes

are Sodium and Magnesium, while the sulphate concentration is always low (Williams,

1991).

Macrophytes are often rare or absent from lakes in Greenland (Foersom et al., 1982)

because vegetation along the shores of especially large lakes is often destroyed by the

movement of ice during spring (Jensen & Christensen, 2003). In smaller lakes

macrophytes occur, along with mosses and algae. During fieldwork in 1996 to collect

Holocene lake sediment cores, Anderson and Bennike (1997) found Potamogeton

praelongus (whitestem pondweed) and Chara baltica (Baltic stonewort) in one lakes

each in the Kangerlussuaq area, and Nitella opaca flexilis (Dark brittlewort) in several

lakes on the Svartenhuk peninsula. Williams (1991) reports several species of

macrophytes from lakes near Kangerlussuaq (see table 1). Mosses form dense mats on

the bottom of many lakes (Anderson et al., 1999). Drepanocladus exannulatus is

common in low salinity lakes, while D. aduncus is more salt tolerant and common in

more saline lakes (Williams, 1991).

Table 1. Macrophytes found in saline lakes (Brayasø, Store Saltsø and Lille Saltsø) and

fresh water lakes in the same vicinity. (+): present in “small” amounts. +: present in

“considerable” amounts. After Williams, 1991.

Species Common name Saline lakes Fresh water lakes

Chara sp. Stonewort (+)

Hippuris vulgaris Common mare's-tail (+) +

Menyanthes trifoliata Buckbean +

Myriophyllum spicatum Spiked watermilfoil (+) +

Nitella sp. Brittlewort (+)

Potamogeton filiformis Fineleaf pondweed (+) +

Ranunculus confervoides White water-buttercup +

Sparganium sp. Bur-reed +

46

The phytoplankton in most lakes is dominated by Golden brown algae, diatoms and

desmids, while green algae can be important in the most nutrient rich waters (Jensen &

Christensen, 2003). The balance between benthic and pelagic primary production is

largely determined by lake morphometry (McGowan et al, 2008).

The largest groups of zooplankton are crustaceans and rotifera, but the zooplankton in

Greenland lakes is relatively species poor. The zooplankton found in a high arctic lake

in North Greenland includes Branchionecta palludosa and Daphnia pulex and well as

chironomid larvae, copepods and ostracods (Blake et al., 1992). There is no special salt

lake fauna in Greenland, so the fauna in the saline lakes consist merely of the most

salinity tolerant among the fresh water species (Williams, 1991).

On the bottom of lakes many detritus feeding invertebrates live, such as beetle mites,

springtails and insect larvae. There can be up to 27.000 midge larvae pr m2

(Jensen &

Christensen, 2003).

Three fish species, Arctic char (Savelinus alpinus), Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) and

three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus), spawn in fresh water in Greenland.

The salmon always migrates between the sea and fresh water, but some populations of

char and stickleback stay in lakes for their whole life cycle.

Many bird species, including ducks, geese and divers, are associated with lakes

especially in their breeding season. Different species forage on insect larvae,

crustaceans, fish, aquatic plants and seeds (Jensen & Christensen, 2003).

8.2 Spatial variation

Lakes are spatially variable in species composition and productivity because of climatic

variations, lake chemistry and nutrient availability. In the gneiss bedrock areas of

Greenland most lakes are very poor in nutrients, while those on in areas on basalt or

calcareous sedimentary rocks are more nutrient rich. Runoff from loose soil and raised

marine deposits can also lead to increased nutrient content, and close to bird cliffs very

eutrofic lakes and ponds can be found (Jensen & Christensen, 2003). Lakes and ponds

in coastal areas of West Greenland are usually oligotrophic and slightly acid, whereas

lakes in the interior of the country are mesotrophic due to some input of nutrient with

aeolian sedimentation. West Greenland lakes generally have a low productivity of

phytoplankton (such as Pediastrum and Botryococcus) at present, while it has often

been higher in the past, when lakes were slightly more nutrient rich (Blake et al., 1992).

In the high arctic North Greenland most lakes are ultra-oligotrophic (Blake et al., 1992).

Ice dynamics and the length of ice cover also plays a role, especially in governing light

availability, and thus limiting primary production. In North Greenland some lakes are

permanently ice covered, in the south it may only be half the year. Algae growth begins

as a thin layer underneath the ice as soon as the snow on top has melted so some light

can get through. Only when or if the ice melts the algae spread in the water (Jensen &

Christensen, 2003).

There are also physical and biological differences between headwater lakes, ice-

dammed lakes, salt lakes and flow-through lakes. Lakes close to the glaciers can have

many clay particles and appear grey, while others can be very clear. The level of

47

knowledge about spatial and temporal variability is limited by the fact that relatively

few limnological studies have been carried out, and each lake has at most been studied a

few times. However, a study of 19 lakes in the Kangerlussuaq area were investigated, 5

saline and 14 fresh water lakes (Andersen et al, 1999).

Two of the saline lakes in the Kangerlussuaq area have been studied in more detail in

connection with palaeoecological investigations. The lakes Braya Sø and SS6 ca. 15 km

west of Kangerlussuaq have mean specific conductivities of 2640 μS cm-1 and 3200 μS

cm-1 respectively (McGowan et al, 2008). None of these lakes have outflows, but they

are fed by small inflowing streams (McGowan et al, 2003). The salts are not of marine

origin, as they can be in saline lakes in coastal areas, but have been washed out from the

soils and accumulated over time (Anderson et al., 1999). The lakes are meromictic,

which means that the water column is permanently stratified. The stratification is

chemical, with elevated salinity waters at the bottom and overlying fresher water

(McGowan et al, 2008). In Braya Sø, which has a maximum depth of 23 m, the

stratification occurs as a pycnocline at a depth of 5.3-5.5 m, where there is an abrupt

30% increase in conductivity. Below the pycnocline temperature and oxygen content

decrease gradually. At the bottom conditions are anoxic, partly because there is no

macrovegetation in Braya Sø below 4 m depth, whereas other saline lakes which had

macrovegetation were not anoxic (Anderson et al., 1999).

Figure 21. Salt lake near Kangerlussuaq. Photo by Dorthe Pedersen.

48

The fresh lakes that were studied in the area were mostly dimictic, which means that

they are stratified in the summer, with mixing in the autumn when the surface waters

cool. Some of the lakes contained fish, Stickleback and Arctic Char. The occurrence of

fish populations has a large impact on the biological structure of the lower trophic levels

in the lake, i.e. on the zoo- and phytoplankton biomass and species composition

(Anderson et al., 1999).

In Paakitsoq just north of Ilulisat, temperature profiles were measured in a 38 m deep

lake right at the edge of the inland ice. Throughout the year, the temperature profile

from top to bottom is practically uniform. The warmest temperature in summer is

3.0 C. From September to May the lake is ice covered, and temperature ranges from

0.0 to 0.5 C (Kern-Hansen, 1990).

49

9. RIVER SYSTEMS

Most of the rivers, streams and brooks in Greenland originate from meltwater from the

ice cap, glaciers and snow, which mostly becomes runoff rather than ground water, due

to the poor drainage that is a result of the permafrost layer.

At the origin the meltwater streams are cold and carry a lot of sediment, and only a few

algae are present. Further downstream there is a vegetation of mosses and attached algae

in the streams, but the strong current and coarse substrate usually does not allow aquatic

higher plants to stay attached. Smaller brooks with less current, on the other hand, can

have a lush vegetation of aquatic plants, mosses and many different algae. Many small

brooks, and even larger streams, dry out in the summer. Outflows from lakes generally

have slower water flow and are more nutrient rich than the meltwater streams. They

support a rich vegetation and a fauna of midges and crustaceans not found in the

meltwater streams. The fish arctic char, arctic salmon and three-spined stickleback can

be found in some water courses when the migrate between the spawning areas and the

sea (Jensen & Christensen, 2003).

Springs are another source of flowing water. Most freeze in winter, but some springs are

homeothermic, i.e. have the same temperature above freezing all year round. They are

also called “hot springs” even though they may not always be warmer than the

surroundings. Most are found in the basalt areas around Disko bay and in East

Greenland, and some on the island Uunartoq in South Greenland. Many of them are

radioactive. The high temperature around the springs, and the longer growing season

due to early snow melt give rise to a species rich vegetation, and many plants have their

northernmost occurrence at homeothermic springs. In the warmer of the springs, which

can be 38-62 C, the vegetation consists of heat loving blue-green algae, many of which

are not found anywhere else on Greenland. The fauna is also special with many snails,

beetles, tardigrades etc. The mite Lebertia groenlandica is endemic to a cold

homeothermic spring on Qeqertasuaq (Jensen & Christensen, 2003).

50

51

10. MARINE ECOSYSTEMS

10.1 Common properties

The ecosystems of the seas around Greenland are, like the climate, affected by the

oceanic currents described in chapter 2. At the southwest coast the waters are temperate

and almost ice free because of the effect of the West Greenland current. Here we find

the four “open sea towns” of Paamiut, Nuuk, Maniitsoq and Sisimiut, which are free of

sea ice all year round, and where 90 % of Greenland’s population lives and most

business is located (Cappelen et al. 2001).

Along the more northern parts of the West coast the so called west ice forms in winter

and is 3-4 meter thick. Only a small fraction of it survives the summer. The East

Greenland current carries drift ice from the Arctic Ocean south along the east coast.

Open areas in the ice which form more or less in the same places every year, known as

polynia, are important habitat for many species. The sea ice distribution and extent

varies from year to year depending on the weather conditions. Since 1953 there has

been a generally declining trend in the extent of Arctic sea ice, as recorded by aircrafts

and ships and since 1979 by regular monitoring using microwave measurements from

satellites (Stroeve et al. 2007). The decline has been 7.8 % pr decade on average for the

period 1953–2006, and 9.1 % per decade for 1979 – 2006. After 2006 the ice extent has

declined even more, with the smallest ice cover ever measured recorded, 4.28 million

km2, and only a small increase in extent to 4.67 million km

2 in September 2008

(NSIDC, 2008). When satellite observations started in 1979 there were 7.2 million km2

ice in the Arctic Sae at the end of the summer season. The loss of ice is a self-

perpetuating process, in that the loss of ice allows more solar energy to enter the ocean,

heating the water masses and thus leading to more ice melt from the sides and bottom.

Furthermore, if several year old ice is lost from an area one year, it is only replaced by

thinner, one year ice at the beginning of the next melting season, and is thus more likely

to melt again during the next summer. This was why the ice extent did not recover much

from 2007 to 2008, and may even have decreased in volume, despite 2008 being colder

and cloudier in the region (NSIDC, 2008).

Apart from the ice, the sea currents also affect water temperature, salinity, nutrients and

the dispersal of marine species. Primary production is largely determined by nutrient

availability and light conditions. The upper water layers receive nutrients from the

bottom water through mixing during winter storms, and when the light increases in

spring large algal blooms occur, starting off the south coast and moving north as the ice

retreats. During the spring bloom the phytoplankton is dominated by large diatom

species, but later in the year smaller species, as well as dino- and nanoflagelates become

dominant (Jensen & Christensen, 2003). An upwelling of nutrient water throughout the

summer leads to an especially high production at the front between the Irminger and

East Greenland currents.

10.2 Fauna

Mikrozooplankton, like bacteria and protozoa contribute to mineralisation and recycling

of nutrients in the water column. Of the larger zooplankton, crustaceans, especially

52

copepods, are the most numerous, comprising 86 % of the biomass. They graze the

phytoplankton, and are in turn important food for several other species, like fish, fish

larvae, birds and marine mammals. This is especially the case for the copepod genus

Calanus and the larger krill. The larvae of larger crustaceans, fish, echinoderms,

molluscs and polychaetes form so-called meroplankton, animals that are planktonic for

only part of their life cycle. They are especially abundant close to the coast (Jensen &

Christensen, 2003). The adults of these groups, along with tunicates and sea anemones

make the benthic invertebrate fauna, which ecologically can be divided into filter

feeders, detritus feeders and predators.

The northern limit of subarctic molluscs like Mytilus edulis, Chlamys islandica and

Littorina saxile in shallow waters mark the limit between subarctic and arctic water

masses, and has varied through time (Funder, 1989).

There are 15 species of Cephalopods (squids and octopods) reported from Greenland

waters, and they play an essential role in the ecosystems as food for many other species

including fish, seabirds and marine mammals (Frandsen & Wieland, 2004). They are a

valuable food resource for these animals because of their high content of lipids. The

most common species is Gonatus fabricii, an oceanic species that lives at depths of 400-

1100 meters in the water column. Because of it’s high biomass and the high lipid

content it might be of interest for commercial fishery for both consumption and

industrial use, although there is not at present or historically a tradition of commercial

fishery of cephalopods in Greenland (Frandsen & Wieland, 2004).

Among the fish, polar cod (Gadus morhua) and capelin (Mallotus villosus) are the most

important, as they are prey for many predators, including larger fish like salmon.

Greenland halibut (Reinhardtius hippoglossoides) and skates (Raja sp.) eat a mix of

pelagic and benthic animals like bivalves and shrimp, while catfish (Anarhichas sp.)

and sanddabs (Hippoglossoides platessoides) only feed on the sea bottom fauna.

Fifteen species of whales occur around Greenland, including blue whale (Balaenoptera

musculus) and bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus), which live on crustaceans and

other planktonic organisms, while for example Minke whales (Balaenoptera

acutorostrata) supplement the planktonic dies with cephalopods and fish. Killer whales

(Orcinus orca) eat mostly fish and cephalopods but also some birds and marine

mammals, which can be as big a narwhals (Monodon monoceros) and walruses

(Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus). Sperm whales (Physeter catodon) also eat mostly

cephalopods, but also states and sharks. Beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) eat

different kinds of fish, as does the narwhal, which also takes some benthic animals.

The five different species of true seals in Greenland eat fish and crustaceans, while

walruses live almost exclusively on bivalves. Polar bear (Ursus maritimus) is a top

predator, feeding mainly on seals and occasionally birds. It spends most of its life, and

catches most of its prey on sea ice, so it is considered a marine animal rather that

terrestrial.

53

11. COASTAL SYSTEMS

11.1 General properties

The littoral zone is defined as the area between the highest and lowest tidal water levels,

and the organisms here endure extremely variable conditions, with daily changes in

water availability and mechanical impact of waves in summer and ice in winter. Only

especially adapted species can survive here. Looking at the coastal area in more general

terms, it provides important habitats for many different species.

Many of Greenland’s seabirds breed in colonies on bird cliffs and small islands. There

are more than a thousand bird colonies in West Greenland. King eiders (Somateria

spectabilis) and eiders are unable to fly for 3-4 weeks each year when they moult their

feathers, and for that period gather in fiords and bays with good foraging possibilities.

Birds are very sensitive to disturbance from human activities like hunting and fishing in

the breeding colonies and moulting areas.

The coast also provides haul-outs for harbour seal (Phoca vitulina concolor) and walrus,

where the animals come on shore. Due to hunting pressure there are not longer any

walrus haul-outs on the west coast, but only in the national park in East Greenland.

Harbour seals breed on the haul-out areas, and are the only seal to breed on land in

Greenland. This makes it more vulnerable to hunting than the other species. In the

Kangerlussuaq fiord there were 500-600 harbour seals in the 1960’s and only about 20

today. It is unknown how large the total population of harbour seal is, and if climate

change has also contributed to its decline (Jensen & Christensen, 2003). Ringed seal

(Phoca hispida) and bearded seal (Erignathus barbatus) are associated with ice along

all of the coasts, while harp seal (Phoca groenlandica) and hooded seal (Cystophora

cristata) are migratory species that breed in the pack ice and after breeding migrate

north along both the east and west coast (Jensen & Christensen, 2003).

11.2 Vegetation

On clayey coastlines salt meadows with Puccinella phryganoides, Stellaria humifusa,

Potentilla egedii and Carex sp. can be found in places. On sand or gravel coastlines, the

same plants are often found, along with Honckenya peploides and others. Elymis mollis

is common on dunes, both where these occur also the coast and inland.

Macro algae are found along the cliff coasts and form bands in the littoral zone. For

example green algae like Alaria sp. and Ulvaria fusca grow just below the high water

mark, with brown algae like Fuscus vesiculosus slightly lower. Laminaria longicruris

occurs on 3-8 meters depth, Agarum cribrosum at 5-10 m. and Lithothamium sp. at

greater depths (Foersom et al., 2008). Barnacles (Balanus balanoides) are also attached

to cliffs in the littoral zone, while Periwinkles graze the green and brown algae. The

forests of macro algae below the low tide line provide important spawning areas for

certain species of fish, including capelin.

54

55

12. ANTHROPOGENIC SYSTEM

12.1 History

12.1.1 The prehistory of Greenland

Greenland has been settled by a succession of different cultures from North America

and from Europe. It has been inhabited by humans since middle Holocene times, from

about 2500 BC according to archaeological evidence.

The first immigrants were of the Saqqaq culture, who, according to new findings using

ancient DNA was related to peoples in eastern Siberia and the Aleuts, rather than

modern day Greenlanders and natives of North America (Thomas et al., 2008). The

Saqqaq were distributed in west Greenland from Thule to Nanortalik, and in East

Greenland south of Scoresby Sund. There were especially many sites around Disko bay,

Sisimiut and Nuuk. They lived in family groups and used all available resources,

including seals, whales, caribou, birds, fish, molluscs and berries. Raw materials, like

the stone killiaq, were traded all over the Saqqaq area.

People of the Independence I culture were the first in Northeast Greenland, were they

arrived around 2400 BC (Elling, 1996). They settled in Peary Land and a few places

along the east coast. In Peary Land the main terrestrial animal was muskox, but others

were also hunted, including arctic fox and polar bear. The Independence I people lived

in family size dwellings, often gathered in small groups, and usually inland or at least

away from the outer coast. Many of the differences between the Independence I and

Saqqaq cultures are probably due to different resources available to them, and

adaptations to different environments (Elling, 1996). It not presently possible to

determine if they came from two independent immigrations into Greenland, or if they

were originally one group, and adapted differently once in Greenland (Jensen, 2006).

The next immigration was of the Early Dorset culture, which populated western,

southern and eastern Greenland ca. 700 BC to 200 AD. In approximately the same

period people inhabited Peary Land and Northeast Greenland. Their culture has been

called Independence II, but recent studies of their stone technology indicate that they are

the same people as the early Dorset, and that differences seen between them are

adaptations to the resources and more extreme climate in the northeast (Grønnøw &

Sørensen, 2006; Jensen, 2006). The economy and settlement pattern of early Dorset is

very similar to the Saqqaq culture, but the datings of archaeological materials indicate

discontinuity in the settlement between the two periods (Jensen, 2006). There may also

be some indications that the Saqqaq were mainly open water hunters, whereas the

Dorset were more adapted to sea ice conditions (Jensen, 2003).

Finds from the Middle Dorset period, which is known from Canada, have not been

found in Greenland, which seems to have been uninhabited from ca. 200-800 AD.

People of the Late Dorset culture inhabited the northwest coast of Greenland from ca.

800 to 1300 AD –possibly with an expansion into northeast Greenland. The Late Dorset

build bigger houses than the earlier peoples, half dug into the ground, indicating a more

sedentary lifestyle, although they also used tents, probably in the warmer part of the

year. They depended mostly on marine mammals like walrus and ringed seal, whereas

terrestrial mammals and birds were less important and fishing very minor. Neither early

56

nor late Dorset used dog sledges, and also no boats or kayaks have been found (Appelt

et al., 1998).

Norse immigrants settled in Southern Greenland around 985 AD and lived there for

around 500 years. They were concentrated in two areas, the Eastern Settlement in

southern Greenland around Igaliko, and the Western Settlement 500 km further north, in

the eastern part of present Nuuk municipality. The last documentary evidence of the

Norse in Greenland is an Icelandic document describing a wedding in the Eastern

Settlement in AD 1408. Clothing and bone from graves have been 14

C dated and show

that there were still Norse living in the area around 1430 (Arneborg et al, 1999), but

after that they disappeared. The reason behind there disappearance, and what happened

to them has been the focus of a lot of research, including palaeoecological. The Norse

were originally farmers, and especially depended on animal husbandry. They settled in

Greenland in the Medieval Warm Period, when climate in Greenland was favourable for

growing hay, and they settled only in the most suitable locations for this purpose. A

cooling period in the 14th century made farming more difficult. Also, lowlying fertile

hay meadows and grazing areas were lots to rising sea levels (Mikkelsen et al., 2008).

Bone material from an archaeological investigation of a Norse farm was studied

(Enghoff, 2003), and the results show that sheep and goats were the most common

domesticated animals, with a few cows. The bone finds show that the Norse hunted

reindeer and birds. Seal bones were also common in the archaeological material, and

their proportion increased during the 400 year settlement period. Although the Norse

did thus adapt from relying almost entirely on farming to a diet much based on marine

wildlife resources (Arneborg et al, 1999), in the end they either died or emigrated,

probably to Iceland where there ancestors had originally come from.

The Thule people, which are thought to be the ancestors of the modern Greenlanders,

developed in Alaska around 1000 AD, during the next 200 years spread quickly across

northern Canada, and arrived in Greenland around 1200 AD. They were genetically

related to modern Alaskan Yupik and Inupiat and the Canadian Inuit (Thomas et al.,

2008). Archaeological finds show, that early on they came into contact with the Late

Dorset people, probably something described in old legends, where the Dorset people

are called Tunit (Appelt et al, 1998). Further south they also came in contact with the

Norse population, but the nature of the contact is unclear. The Thule people travelled all

along the coast of Greenland, and settled in all but the northernmost part, in relatively

large settlements. All terrestrial and marine animals were hunted for food and other

resources, and internal trade contacts were substantial. From the 17th century there was

trading between Eskimo and European whaling expeditions to the west coast.

57

Table 2. Overview of archaeological cultures in Greenland.

Archaeological cultures in

Greenland

Period Geographical area

Saqqaq culture 2500-800 BC West and Southeast Greenland

Independence I 2400-1300 BC North and Northeast Greenland

Independence II 800-0 BC Peary land and Northeast

Greenland

Early Dorset 700 BC-200 AD West, south and East Greenland

Late Dorset 800-1300 AD Northwest Greenland

Norse 935-1440 AD South and southwest Greenland

Thule From 1200 AD All of Greenland except the

northernmost part

12.1.2 Recent history of Greenland

The Norse Greenlanders submitted to Norwegian rule during the 13th

century, so

became part of the realm of Denmark when Norway entered a union with Denmark as

part of the Kalmar union in 1397. Norway and Denmark was one kingdom until 1814,

and when the rule over Norway was then transferred to Sweden, Greenland remained

under Danish rule as a colony.

The last communication with the Norse colony in Greenland was in 1408. During the

17th

century European whaling ships hunted bowhead whales off the coast of Greenland

and occasionally traded with the local Inuit population. In 1721 the Lutheran missionary

Hans Egede was sent by King Frederik IV of Denmark to establish a mission and re-

establish the colonial claim to the island. He did not find descendants of the Norse, but

he started a mission among the Inuit and founded the town of Nuuk (then Godthåb) in

1724. The Danish state hereafter kept a tight control of trade with Greenland.

In 1931, Norway attempted to claim eastern Greenland, but in 1933 the Permanent

Court of Arbitration in The Hague decided that the entire island belonged to Denmark.

During the Second World War, supplies to Greenland from Denmark were cut off, and

replaced by supplies from North America. The USA built military bases and

installations in Greenland, including the airfields at Kangerlussuaq and Thule.

In 1953 the colonial status ended, and the Danish constitution was extended to

Greenland. An integration policy intended to equalise the population with that of

Denmark economically, socially and legally, but had many problems. During the 1970

there was a drive towards more self government, expressed for example by many

authors and singers writing in Greenlandic. In 1979 the home rule (hjemmestyre)

became established, and except for foreign, monetary and legal policy, most policy

areas are now governed by the home rule (www.nanoq.gl).

58

12.1.3 History of Kangerlussuaq

The area around Kangerlussuaq has been used by palaeoeskimo and Inuit hunters who

have hunted reindeer in the area during the summer. Archaeological finds from surveys

carried out in the area to the south of the fiord in 2001, 2002 and 2003 include

temporary shelters, tent rings, remains of reindeer, different hunting implements and

loose finds, but only few graves (Gabriel et al., 2001; Odgaard et al., 2003; 2005). Some

finds have been dated by 14

C. This includes a tent ring from 3600 BP, belonging to the

Saqqaq culture, and a Thule culture camp site from 1350 AD (Odgaard et al., 2003). A

settlement with seven small tent houses was registered west of Lake Fergusson near

Kangerlussuaq in 2003 (Odgaard et al., 2005). It is known from historical sources that

reindeer hunting was going on in the high plain south of Kangerlussuaq in the 18th and

19th centuries, while in later years the summer hunting was more restricted to areas

along the coast of the fiord (Odgaard et al., 2003).

While the region around Kangerlussuaq has thus been used for summer hunting for

thousands of years, it has probably never been used for permanent settlement until the

air base was founded by the Americans during the second world war in 1941. Apart

from a brief intermission in 1950-51, where it became Danish for a short time, it

remained an American base until 1992, when it came under Greenland home rule. From

1954 to 1965 SAS used the base for refuelling commercial planes on the route to Los

Angeles, and in 1960 the base was expanded with a civilian part and a hotel. The small

town today has around 500 inhabitants, and the airport and tourist industry are the main

employers.

Figure 22. View of Kangerlussuaq air base. Photo by Dorthe Pedersen.

59

12.2 Land use

12.2.1 Settlements

There are 59 settlements in Greenland (Jensen & Christensen, 2003), and 13 towns with

more than 1000 inhabitants. Considering the size of the country, even when taking only

the ice free areas into consideration, settlements take up a very small part of the total

area.

12.2.2 Agriculture

Agriculture plays a relatively minor role in the Greenland economy. There is no arable

farming, but there is extensive sheep farming in south Greenland, with 60 farms

(Thorkelsson, 2003), covering and an area of ca. 240000 ha. There are approximately

21000 sheep (Statistics Greenland, 2008) and they produce 250 tons of lamb meat every

year (Hansen, 2002). In 2006 there were also ca. 23000 tame reindeer in Greenland,

which contribute to food production along with wild caribou. Apart from these there

were 217 horses and 24 cows (Statistics Greenland, 2008). Permanent pasture covers

approximately 9 km2

in Greenland, forest 1 km2

(Agerskov, 2008).

12.2.3 Industry

The economy of Greenland has to a large extent been based traditionally on fishery, and

to some degree on mineral resources. The fishing industry accounts for 87 % of

Greenland’s exports today, while other industries include handicrafts, hides and skins

and small shipyards (Statistics Greenland, 2008). Greenland is not economically self

reliant today, but receives an annual subsidy of 3,120 mill. Dkk from Denmark (2006).

It is hoped that exploitation of mineral and oil resources can lead to economical

independence in the future. Tourism is another potential growth area. The ice sheet

represents a large potential source of hydropower. For example, the Tasersiaq Lake

could provide more than 2000 GWh pr year. This could in theory cover the entire

energy consumption of Greenland, but the scattered population and large distances

makes it impossible to share electricity installations for the entire country. Instead, there

have been different plans of using the hydropower for various high energy demanding

industries (Ahlstrøm, 2003).

12.3 Impact on natural systems

The population density in Greenland is only 0.2 people pr km2 of ice free area, and

transport between cities and settlements is by air, sea or dog sled, so there are only few

roads outside cities, and no railroads. Therefore, fragmentation of natural habitats due to

human impact is very limited outside the small areas covered by settlements.

Mining and mineral exploration has had some effect on ecosystems due to disturbance

and destruction of local biota and pollution with for example heavy metals, but specific

changes to biodiversity due to mining has not be documented (Jensen & Christensen,

60

2003). Oil exploration will potentially some impact in the future, and arctic ecosystems

are very sensitive to pollution with oil.

Sheep farming occupies a relatively large area in South Greenland, 240000 ha, but still

only a small fraction of the total land area. Grazing and trampling by sheep can lead to

increased erosion due to destruction of the plant cover. Sheep farming negatively

impacts birch forest and willow shrub ecosystems. In the past animals grazed these

vegetation types heavily in the winter. Now the sheep are kept indoors over winter, and

therefore do not graze, but instead scrub and forest are cleared to grow winter fodder

(Jensen & Christensen, 2003).

However, the main source of human impact on the natural systems in Greenland is the

direct exploitation of animal species. Hunting and fishing has traditionally played a

major role in the economy of Greenland, and the fisheries still do, while hunting is

mostly for local consumption. The use and status of 25 animal species is described by

Jensen & Christensen (2003). The information presented by them is summarised in table

3.

Fish and seafood products make up 87 % of Greenland’s exports –pink shrimp alone

55 % (Statistics Greenland, 2008). Other important species are Greenland halibut,

Atlantic cod and snow crab. The shrimp and halibut fisheries are regulated by quota and

license regulations (Statistics Greenland, 2008). For several of the species that are

fished, including Greenland Halibut, Atlantic cod, Ocean perch and Atlantic salmon, the

populations and catches have declined due to over fishing (Jensen & Christensen,

2003). This can also be seen by comparing catches in 1996 and 2006 (table 3). The

catch of Cod, Stonefish (Sebastes sp.), and shrimp have all declined.

About 2700 people have a professional hunting licence, and ca. 7000 have a non-

commercial licence (Statistics Greenland, 2008). Every year they catch around 7000

tons of meat for human consumption, which is about twice as much as the amount of

meat that is imported to Greenland (Hansen, 2002). Most of the meat is of different

species of seals and walrus. But also whales, reindeer, muskox, hare and many birds,

especially Brünnich’s guillemot and eider are hunted for food. To many seabirds,

hunting and collection of eggs for food are the most important threats today, and

currently have a large impact on the populations. Oil spills could become an additional

threat in the future if potential oil offshore the west coast becomes exploited (Boertman

et al., 1996).

12.4 Impact of natural systems on humans

The location of settlements in Greenland is very much impacted and limited by the

natural environment, particularly topography and the occurrence of ice, both inland ice

and sea ice, which limits transportation by sea. A large proportion of the population

lives in those areas along the west coast which are ice free all year.

The cold climate, which prevents arable farming, is probably the main reason for the

low population density in Greenland. As mentioned above, the natural system in

Greenland directly provides a substantial amount of the meat consumed locally. Also

birds’ eggs and berries are collected for food. In earlier times the human population was

completely dependant on the local natural food resources, and hence vulnerable to

61

variations in availability, for example due to climate changes. Nowadays, food can be

and is imported from the south, reducing this dependence to some degree. However, the

biological resources, especially in the sea still play a large economical role for

Greenland. Geological resources in the form of minerals and especially oil or gas are by

many hoped to play a larger role in the future, and maybe provide economical

independence for the Greenland society.

Table 3. Use, catch and status for animal species summarised from Jensen &

Christensen, 2003. Catch 2006 from Grønlands Statistik, 2007 listed where available.

Species

Scientific name Use Reported

catch 1996

Reported

catch 2006

Population size

and status

Common

eider

Somateria

mollissima

Meat, eggs

collected for

consumption

68-82 000 unknown,

probably declining

King eider Somateria

spectabilis

Meat 4-5 000 280 000 wintering

birds

Brünnich’s

guillemot

(Thick-billed

murre)

Uria lomvia Meat 188-200 000 360 000 pairs,

decreasing

Arctic tern Sterna paradisaea Eggs collected

for consumption

Unknown 30-60 000

probably declining

Caribou Rangifer tarandus

groenlandicus

Meat, hide and

antlers

Ca. 2600 Varies, 20 000 in

1996

Muskox Ovibos moschatus Hunted for

trophies and meat

500-600 9500-12500

(North and

Northeast)

Polar bear Ursus maritimus Meat, fat, hide East ca. 100,

Northwest ca.

180

East unknown,

Northwest ca.

3800

Atlantic

Walrus

Odobenus

rosmarus

Meat, fat, hide,

tusks

East ca 25,

West ca. 450

East 500-1000,

west unknown

Ringed seal Phoca hispida Meat and skin 60-70 000 44000 Unknown,

probably stable

Harp seal Phoca

groenlandica

Meat and skin ca. 50 000 64000 ca. 5.3 million

Harbour seal Phoca vitulina

concolor

Skin 260-280

Total 4000

Unknown,

declined during

20th century

Bearded seal Erignathus

barbatus

Skin 18-1900 Unknown,

probably stable

Hooded seal Crystophora

cristata

Hunted for skin 7-8 000 ca. 350 000

Beluga

whale

Delphinapterus

leucas

Hunted for

Mattak (skin and

blubber)

6-700 Declining

Narwhal Monodon

monoceros

Hunted for

Mattak, meat and

teeth

380-700 Probably stable

Minke whale Balaenoptera

acutorostrata

Hunted for meat.

No commercial

use.

ca. 180 24-48 000

62

Fin whale Balaenoptera

phusalus

Hunted for meat.

No commercial

use.

5-19 0 520-2100

Greenland

Halibut

Reinhardtius

hippoglossoides

Fished for export 19 000 tons 26000 tons Has declined due

to fishing pressure

Atlantic cod Gadus morhua Local

consumption and

export

17 000 tons 8700 tons Has declined due

to fishing pressure

Ocean perch Sebastes marinus Local

consumption and

export

50 tons

9600 tons

Has declined due

to fishing pressure

Deepwater

redfish

Sebastes mentella Local

consumption and

export

130 000 tons Benthic population

has declined,

oceanic stable

Atlantic

salmon

Salmo salar Local

consumption and

export

92 tons Has declined

Arctic char Savelinus alpinus Mainly for local

consumption

More than 79

tons (1997)

Unknown

Pink shrimp Pandalus borealis Mainly for export 71 000 tons 60500 tons Unknown

Snow crab Chionoecetes

opilio

Mainly for export 817 tons 2966 tons Ca. 14 000 tons in

1996

Iceland

scallop

Chlamys islandica Mainly for export 2000 tons Unknown

63

REFERENCES

Agerskov, U., 2008. Nordic Statistical Yearbook 2008. Nord, Volume 46. Nordic

Council of Ministers.

Ahlstrøm, A.P., 2003. Ice Sheet Ablation Assessed by Observation, Remote Sensing

and Modelling. 2003/49, Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, Copenhagen.

Ahlstrøm, A.P., Bøggild, C.E., Olesen, O.B., Pedersen, D. and Mohr, J.J., 2007. Mass

balance of the Amitsulöq ice cp, West Greenland, Glacier Mass Balance Changes and

Meltwater Discharge (selected papers from sessions at the IAHS Assembly in Foz do

Iguacu, Brazil, 2005). IAHS Publication 138, pp. 107-115.

Anderson, N.J. and Bennike, O., 1997. Holocene lake sediments in West Greenland and

their palaeoclimatic and palaeoecological implications. Geology of Greenland Survey

Bulletin, 176: 89-94.

Anderson, N.J. et al., 1999. Limnological and palaeolimnological studies of lakes in

south-western Greenland. Geology of Greenland Survey Bulletin, 183: 68-74.

Appelt, M., Gulløv, H.C. and Kapel, H., 1998. De sidste palæoeskimoer i Grønland -

Nyt lys over den gådefulde Dorsetkultur. Nationalmuseets Arbejdsmark, 1998: 11-26.

Arneborg, J. et al., 1999. Change of diet of the Greenland Vikings determined from

stable carbon isotope analysis and C-14 dating of their bones. Radiocarbon, 41(2): 157-

168.

Benarroch, J., 2006. Skælvende gletschere. Polarfronten 4/06.

Bennike, O. and Björck, S., 2002. Chronology of the last recession of the Greenland Ice

Sheet. Journal of Quaternary Science, 17 (3): 211-219.

Blake, W.J., Boucherle, M.M., Fredskild, B., Janssens, J.A. and Smol, J.P., 1992. The

geomorphological setting, glacial history and Holocene development of "Kap Inglefield

Sø", Inglefield Land, North-West Greenland. Meddelelser om Grønland Geoscience, 27:

1-42.

Boertman, D., Mosbech, A., Falk, K. and Kampp, K., 1996. Seabird colonies in western

Greenland. NERI Technical report 170, NERI, Roskilde.

Bonow, J.M., Lidmar-Bergström, K. and Japsen, P., 2006. Palaeosurfaces in central

West Greenland as reference for identification of tectonic movements and estimation of

erosion. Global and Planetary Change, 50: 161-183.

Bonow, J.M., Lidmar-Bergström, K., Japsen, P., Chalmers, J.A. and Green., P.F., 2007.

Elevated erosion surfaces in central West Greenland and southern Norway: their

significance in integrated studies of passive margin development. Norwegian journal of

Geology, 87: 197-206.

64

Brown, J., O.J. Ferrians, Jr., J.A. Heginbottom, and E.S. Melnikov. 1998, revised

February 2001. Circum-arctic map of permafrost and ground ice conditions. Boulder,

CO: National Snow and Ice Data Center/World Data Center for Glaciology. Digital

media.

Cappelen, J., 2008. DMI Annual Climate Data Collection 1873-2007, Denmark, The

Faroe Islands and Greenland - with graphics and Danish summary. Technical Report

08-03, Danish Meteorological Institute, Copenhagen.

Cappelen, J., Jørgensen, B.V., Laursen, E.V., Stannius, L.S. and Thomsen, R.S., 2001.

The Observed Climate of Greenland, 1958-99 -with Climatological Standard Normals,

1961-90. Technical Report 00-18, Danish Meteorological Institute, Copenhagen.

CAVM Team, 2003. Circumpolar Arctic Vegetation Map. Scale 1:7,500,000.

Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF) Map No. 1. U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service, Anchorage, Alaska.

Cuyler, C., Rosing, M., Egede, J., Heinrich, R. and Mølgaard, H., 2005. Status of two

West Greenland caribou populations 2005. 1) Akia-Maniitsoq. 2) Kangerlussuaq-

Sisimiut. Technical Report No. 61, Greenland Institute of Natural Resources.

Daniels, F.J.A. and Wilhelm, M., 2001. On the way to an integrated vegetation map of

Greenland. In: M.K. Raynolds and C.J. Markon (Editors), FOURTH

INTERNATIONAL CIRCUMPOLAR ARCTIC VEGETATION MAPPING

WORKSHOP. U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 02-181, pp. 22-37.

Dawes, P.R. and Glendal, E.W., 2008. Catalogue of Greenland publications and data.

Orginally 1996/114; updated version available online, Geological Survey of Denmark

and Greenland, Copenhagen.

Ekström, G., Nettles, M. and Abers, G.A., 2003. Glacial Earthquakes. Science, 302:

622-624.

Ekström, G., Nettles, M. and Tsai, V.C., 2006. Seasonality and Increasing Frequency of

Greenland Glacial Earthquakes. Science, 311: 1756-1758.

Elling, H., 1996. The Independence I and Old Nuulliit Cultures in Relation to Saqqaq

Culture. In: B. Grønnow (Editor), The Paleo-Eskimo Cultures in Greenland -New

Perspectives in Greenlandic Archaeology. Danish Polar Centre Publications. Danish

Polar Center, Copenhagen, pp. 177-190.

Enghoff, I.B., 2003. Hunting, fishing and animal husbandry at The Farm Beneath The

Sand, Western Greenland. Medelelser om Grønland -Man and Society, 28.

Foersom, T., Kapel, F.O. and Svarre, O., 1982. Nunatta Naasui -Grønlands flora i

farver. Pilersuiffik.

Frandsen, R.P. and Wieland, K., 2004. Cephalopods in Greenland Waters. Technical

report no. 57, Pinngortitaleriffik, Greenland Institute of Natural Resources.

65

Funder, S., 1989. Quaternary geology of the ice-free areas and adjacent shelves of

Greenland. Quaternary geology of Canada and Greenland. . In: R.J. Fulton (Editor), The

Geology of North America. Geological Society of America, Geological Survey of

Canada, pp. 741-792.

Gabriel, M., Grønnow, B., Odgaard, U., Pasda, C. and Pasda, K., 2001.

Bosættelsesmønstre i det centrale Vestgrønland. Rapport om undersøgelserne i

Angujartorfiup Nuna, Manitsoq Kommune, Sommeren 2001. Feltrapport 4, SILA,

Nationalmuseet, Copenhagen.

Gulløv, H.C., 1997. From Middle Ages to Colonial Times. Archaeological and

ethnohistorical studies of the Thule Culture in South West Greenland 1300 - 1800 AD.

Meddelelser om Grønland, 23. Danish Polar Center, Copenhagen.

Grønlands Statistik, 2007. Fiskeri og fangst 2006, Grønlands Statistik, Nuuk.

Grønnow, B. and Sørensen, M., 2006. Palaeo-Eskimo Migrations into Greenland: The

Canadian Connection. In: J. Arneborg and B. Grønnow (Editors), Dynamics of Northern

Societies. Proceedings of the SILA/NABO Conference on Arctic and North Atlantic

Archaeology, Copenhagen, May 10th – 14th, 2004. PNM, Publications from the

National Museum. Studies in Archaeology & History, pp. 59-74.

Hansen, K., 2002. Rovdrift truer Grønlands storslåede natur. Naturens Verden, 1-2002:

2-17.

Heginbottom, J A, 2000. Permafrost distribution and gound ice in surficial materials; in,

The physical environment of the Mackenzie Valley, Northwest Territories: a base line

for the assessment of environmental change; Dyke, L D; Brooks, G R. Geological

Survey of Canada, Bulletin 547; pages 31-39

Hurrell, J.W., 1996. Influence of variations in extratropical wintertime teleconnections

on Northern Hemisphere temperature. Geophysical Research Letters, 23: 665-668.

Jensen, D.B. and Christensen, K.D., 2003. The Biodiversity of Greenland - a country

study. Technical Report No. 55, Pinngortitaleriffik, Grønlands Naturinstitut.

Jensen, J.F., 2006. The Stone Age of Qeqertarsuup Tunua (Disko Bugt). A regional

analysis of the Saqqaq and Dorset cultures of Central West Greenland. Monographs on

Greenland, Man and Society, 32. Danish Polar Centre, 272 pp.

Jensen, K.G., 2003. Holocene hydrographic changes in Greenland coastal waters -

Reconstructing environmental change from sub-fossil and contemporary diatoms,

Danmarks og Grønlands Geologiske Undersøgelse Rapport 2003/58. GEUS,

Copenhagen, pp. 160.

Jensen, S.M., Lind, M., Rasmussen, T.M., Schjøth, F. and Secher, K., 2003. Diamond

exploration data from West Greenland. 2003/21, Geological Survey of Denmark and

Greenland, Copenhagen.

66

Jensen, S.M. and Secher, K., 2004. Investigating the diamond potential of southern

West Greenland. Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland Bulletin, 4: 69-72.

Jørgensen, T.M., Larsen, T.B., Bøggild, C.E. and Krüger, J., 2005. Glaciale Jordskælv -

når isen rykker. Geologisk Nyt, 6/2005: 16-19.

Kern-Hansen, C., 1990. Data basis for permafrost studies in Greenland, Polartech'90.

Danish Society for Arctic Technology, Copenhagen, Denmark, pp. 635-644.

Kleman, J. and Hättestrand, C., 1999. Frozen-bed Fennoscandian and Laurentide ice

sheets during the Last Glacial Maximum. Nature, 402: 63-66.

Knight, P.G., Sugden, D.E. and Minty, C.D., 1994. Ice flow around large obstacles as

indicated by basal ice exposed at the margin of the Geenland ice sheet. Journal of

Glaciology, 40 (135): 359-367.

Krabill, W. et al., 1999. Rapid Thinning of Parts of the Southern Greenland Ice Sheet.

Science, 283 (5407): 1522-1524.

Lunardini, V.J., 1995: Permafrost Formation Time. CRREL Report 95-8

McGowan, S., Ryves, D.B. and Anderson, N.J., 2003. Holocene records of effective

precipitation in West Greenland. The Holocene, 13 (2): 239-249.

McGowan, S., Juhler, R.K. and Anderson, N.J., 2008. Autotrophic response to lake age,

conductivity and temperature in two West Greenland lakes. Journal of Paleolimnology,

39: 301-317.

Mikkelsen, N., Kuijpers, A. and Arneborg, J., 2008. The Norse in Greenland and late

Holocene sea-level change. Polar Record, 44 (228): 45-50.

NSIDC, 2008. Arctic Sea Ice Down to Second-Lowest Extent; Likely Record-Low

Volume. Despite cooler temperatures and ice-favoring conditions, long-term decline

continues. Press release from the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC),

University of Colorado. http://nsidc.org/news/press/20081002_seaice_pressrelease.html.

Odgaard, U. et al., 2003. Bosættelsesmønstre i det centrale Vestgrønland. Rapport om

undersøgelserne i Angujartorfiup Nunaa, Manitsoq Kommune, Sommeren 2002.

Feltrapport 12, SILA, Nationalmuseet, Copenhagen.

Odgaard, U., Knudsen, P., Petersen, H.C. and Lembo, A., 2005. Bosættelsesmønstre i

det centrale Vestgrønland. Rapport om undersøgelserne i Angujartorfiup Nunaa,

Manitsoq Kommune, Sommeren 2003. Feltrapport 20, SILA, Nationalmuseet,

Copenhagen.

Ozols, U. and Broll, G., 2003. Soil Ecological Processes in Vegetation Patches of Well

Drained Permafrost Affected Sites (Kangerlussuaq - West Greenland). Polarforschung,

73(1): 5 -14.

67

Russel, A.J., 1989. A comparison of two recent jokullaups from an ice-dammed lake,

Søndre Strømfjord, west Greenland. Journal of Glaciology, 35(120): 157-162.

Russel, A.J., 1993. Obstacle marks produced by flow around stranded ice blocks during

a glacier outburst flood (jökulhlaup) in west Greenland. Sedimentology, 40: 1091-1111.

Russel, A.J., Aitken, J.F. and De Jong, C., 1990. Observations on the drainage of an ice-

dammed lake in west Greenland. Journal of Glaciology, 36 (122): 72-74.

Schjøth, F. and Steenfelt, A., 2004. Mineral resources of the Precambrian sheild of West

Greenland. Part 1. Compilation of geoscience data. 2004/16, Geological Survey of

Denmark and Greenland, Copenhagen.

Scholz, H. and Baumann, M., 1997. An "open system pingo" near Kangerlussuaq

(Søndre Strømfjord), West Greenlnad. Geology of Greenland Survey Bulletin, 176:

104-108.

Sieg, B., Drees, B. and Daniëls, F.J.A., 2006. Vegetation and Altitudinal Zonation in

Continental West Greenland. Meddelelser om Grønland, Bioscience, 57. Danish Polar

Center, Copenhagen, 93 pp.

Statistics Greenland, 2008. Greenland in Figures 2008. 5th revised edition, Statistics

Greenland, Greenland Home Rule Government, Nuuk.

Steenfelt, A., Stendal, H., Nielsen, B.M. and Rasmussen, T.M., 2004. Gold in central

West Greenland -known and prospective occurences. Geological Survey of Denmark

and Greenland Bulletin, 4: 65-68.

Stroeve, J., Holland, M.M., Meier, W., Scambos, T. and Serreze, M., 2007. Arctic sea

ice decline: Faster than forecast. Geophysical Research Letters, 34: 1-5.

Sugden, D.E., Clapperton, C.M. and Knight, P.G., 1985. A jokullaup near Søndre

Strømfjord, west Greenland, and some effects on the ice margin. Journal of Glaciology,

31(109): 366-368.

Thomas, M. et al., 2008. Paleo-Eskimo mtDNA Genome Reveals Matrilineal

Discontinuity in Greenland. Science, 320 (5884): 1787 - 1789.

Thorkelsson, G., 2003. Udvikling af lammekøds-produktion og marked i Grønland 2000

–2002. Rapport til NORA. NORRØNT ATLANTSSAMSTARV, Fiskeriernes

Forskningsinstitut og Islands Universitet.

Tweed, F.S., 2000. Jökullaup initiation by ice-dam flotation: The significance of glacier

debris content. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 25: 105-108.

van Tatenhove, F.G.M., 1995. The dynamics of deglaciation in west Greenland with

emphasis on recent ice-marginal processes. Thesis Universiteit van Amsterdam. CIP-

DATA Koninklijke Bibliotheek, Den Haag, 196 pp.

68

van Tatenhove, F.G.M. and Olesen, O.B., 1994. Ground temperature and related

permafrost characteristics in West Greenland. Permafrost and Periglacial Processes, 5:

199-215.

Weidick, A., 1968. Observations on some Holocene glacier fluctuations in West

Greenland. Meddelelser om Grønland, 201 (4): 83-107.

Williams, W.D., 1991. Comments on the so-called salt lakes of Greenland.

Hydrobiologia, 210 (1-2): 61-74.

Wolfe, S. A., Smith, S., Riseborough, D., Nixon, M. (2008) Active-layer characteristics

and correlations to recent summer climatic indices, Mackenzie Valley, Circumpolar-

Active - Layer Monitoring (CALM) sites, Canada. Abstract, CGU Canadian

Geophysical Union-CGRG Joint Meeting; Banff, AB; CA; May 11-14, 2008.

Ap

pen

dix

1

Spec

ies

list

Lati

n

En

gli

sh

Sw

edis

h

Des

rip

tion

Aln

us

Ald

er

Ala

r D

ecid

uous

tree

; sp

ecie

s in

the

Bet

ula

ceae

fam

ily

Bac

illa

rioph

yce

ae

Dia

tom

s K

isel

alger

E

ukar

yoti

c al

gae

Bet

ula

ceae

B

irch

fam

ily

Bjö

rkväx

ter

Dec

iduous

tree

s an

d s

hru

bs,

ord

er F

agal

es

Bet

ula

nana

D

war

f-bir

ch

Dvär

gbjö

rk

Spec

ies

in t

he

Bet

ula

ceae

Botr

yoco

ccus

(not

avai

lable

) S

ågsp

ånsa

lg

Gre

en c

olo

nia

l m

icro

algae

Car

yoph

yll

acea

e P

ink /

Car

nat

ion f

amil

y

Nej

likväx

ter

Flo

wer

ing p

lants

, ord

er C

aryoph

yll

ales

Char

acea

e S

tonew

ort

fam

ily

Kra

nsa

lger

G

reen

alg

ae /

gre

en p

lant,

ord

er C

har

ales

Chara

S

tonew

ort

S

träf

se

Gen

us

in C

har

acea

e fa

mil

y

Chen

opodia

ceae

G

oose

foot

fam

ily

Mål

lväx

ter

Flo

wer

ing

pla

nts

in

th

e fa

mil

y

Am

aran

thac

eae,

ord

er C

aryoph

yll

ales

Cyper

acea

e S

edge

fam

ily

Hal

vgrä

s F

low

erin

g p

lants

, ord

er P

oal

es

Chir

onom

idae

N

on-b

itin

g m

idges

F

jäder

myggo

r 2-w

inged

inse

cts

(Inse

cta:

Dip

tera

)

Chyd

oru

s arc

ticu

s W

ater

fle

a

Cla

do

cera

(C

rust

acea

e)

Daphnia

pule

x W

ater

-fle

a V

atte

nlo

ppa

Wat

er-f

lea

Dis

tich

ium

(n

ot

avai

lable

) P

lanm

oss

or

Aquat

ic m

oss

Dry

as

Aven

s F

jäll

sippor

Gen

us

in t

he

Rosa

ceae

fam

ily

Dry

as

oct

opet

ala

M

ounta

in a

ven

s F

jäll

sippa

Spec

ies

in t

he

Rosa

ceae

fam

ily

Em

pet

rum

nig

rum

C

om

mon c

row

ber

ry

Sydkrå

kb

är

Spec

ies

in t

he

Eri

cace

ae f

amil

y

Eri

cace

ae

Hea

th f

amil

y

Lju

ngväx

ter

Flo

wer

ing p

lants

, ord

er E

rica

les

Ilyo

cypri

s bra

dyi

(n

ot

avai

lable

)

Fre

shw

ater

ost

raco

d

Myr

ioph

yllu

m s

pic

atu

m

Eura

sian

wat

erm

ilfo

il

Ax

slin

ga

Spec

ies

in t

he

ord

er S

axif

ragal

es

Nit

ella

B

ritt

lew

ort

S

linke

Gen

us

in t

he

Char

acea

e fa

mil

y

Papave

r ra

dic

atu

m

Arc

tic

popp

y

Val

lmoväx

ter

(=

Pap

aver

acea

e)

Spec

ies

in

the

fam

ily

Pap

aver

acea

e,

ord

er

Ran

uncu

lale

s

Ped

iast

rum

(n

ot

avai

lable

) T

agghju

l G

reen

alg

ae

69

Poac

eae

Gra

sses

G

röen

F

low

erin

g p

lants

, ord

er P

oal

es

Pota

mog

eton f

ilif

orm

is

Sle

nder

-lea

ved

pondw

eed

T

rådnat

e A

quat

ic p

lant,

ord

er A

lism

atal

es

Rosa

ceae

R

ose

fam

ily

Roso

r F

low

erin

g p

lants

Sagin

a-t

ype

Pea

rlw

ort

s S

mal

nar

var

G

enus

in t

he

Car

yoph

yll

acea

e fa

mil

y

Sali

x W

illo

w

Vid

eväx

ter

Dec

iduous

tree

s an

d s

hru

bs,

ord

er M

alpig

hia

les

Sali

x arc

tica

A

rcti

c w

illo

w

Ish

avsv

ide

Spec

ies

in t

he

Sal

icac

eae

Sali

x gla

uca

nort

her

n

wil

low

, gra

yle

af

wil

low

Rip

vid

e S

pec

ies

in t

he

Sal

icac

eae

Sali

x her

bace

a

Dw

arf

wil

low

, sn

ow

bed

wil

low

Dvär

gvid

e S

pec

ies

in t

he

Sal

icac

eae

Sax

ifra

gac

eae

Sax

ifra

ge

fam

ily

Ste

nbrä

ckev

äxte

r F

low

erin

g p

lants

, ord

er S

axif

ragal

es

Saxi

fraga

caes

pit

osa

-typ

e T

uft

ed a

lpin

e S

axif

rage

Tuvbrä

cka

Num

ber

of

spec

ies

in t

he

Sax

ifra

gac

eae

fam

ily

Saxi

fraga

ste

llari

s S

tarr

y S

axif

rage

Stj

ärnbrä

cka

Spec

ies

in t

he

Sax

ifra

gac

eae

fam

ily

Spongil

la (

lacu

stri

s)

Fre

shw

ater

spon

ge

Spre

tig

sötv

atte

nsv

amp

Fre

shw

ater

spon

ges

Toly

pel

la

Gre

at T

asse

l S

tonew

ort

R

ufs

e G

enus

in t

he

Char

acea

e fa

mil

y

Vacc

iniu

m

Blu

eber

ry, cr

anber

ry e

tc

Skogsb

är

Gen

us

in t

he

Eri

cace

ae f

amil

y

Warn

storf

ia e

xannula

ta

Hook-m

oss

K

ärrk

rokm

oss

a A

quat

ic b

ryoph

yte

70