The objective of hydrological measurements was to document the volume of streamflow, and streamwater characteristics, from the watershed, along with Lake C2 water level and outflow, through each field period. These records provided the foundation for examining the watershed response to weather variability and the hydrologic control of sediment flux.
Detailed documentation on streamflow and sediment transport methods and equipment are provided for several reasons. An important emphasis of this study, and the Taconite Inlet Project, was to document and understand processes based on field measurements. Fieldwork was often conducted under adverse conditions, necessitating adaptation of standard procedures to fit logistical, climatic and other constraints. Another reason for the degree of detail presented below is that the field methods and equipment employed became increasingly sophisticated from the first to the third field season. Lastly, the methodological successes and shortcomings of this study will hopefully be of use in the design of future studies.
Streamflow measurements were concentrated in the principal stream entering Lake C2, where flow began each year after the arrival of the field party. Measurements commenced as soon as streamflow began, and continued through each season. The goal was to obtain a continuous record of discharge and streamwater temperature. In general, streamflow into Lake C2 was determined by relating stage measurements at a gaging station site to discharge measurements made by the conventional current-meter method. The field measurement methodology evolved during the three field seasons, which continually improved both the resolution and accuracy of the streamflow record. (TABLE: hydrological data collection)
Streamwater temperature was measured to help understand the interaction with other variables through time, such as atmospheric energy inputs and discharge, and to investigate interrelationships between water temperature, the streambed, and sediment transport. In addition, water temperature measurement was necessary to permit calculation of streamwater density entering Lake C2.
Subsequent sections discuss aspects of discharge measurement and hydrograph production, as well as the measurement of streamwater temperature, electrical conductivity. In the section entitled Observations, Lake C2 water level, outflow from the lake, and the sampling of waters for del 18O analyses are discussed in their entirety.
The objective of sedimentological measurements was to document the magnitude and variability of fluvial sediment flux, from the watershed into Lake C2, over various time scales. Fluvial sediment is defined here following the U.S. Geological Survey (Edwards and Glysson, 1988), as fragmentary material originating from the weathering of rocks, and also includes organic material such as plant fragments. Sedimentological fieldwork was designed to sample sediment in transit past the stream gaging station site, concentrating on that which was in suspension. Streamwater samples were filtered in the field, then processed in the laboratory to determine the suspended sediment concentration (SSC) at the time of sampling.
Subsequent sections document the equipment and strategies used in the acquisition, processing and analysis of fluvial sediment samples. The emphasis of the study was on suspended sediments, which reflects the larger project emphasis on understanding the formation of laminated sediments in Lake C2. However, methods pertaining to bedload transport, measured during the 1991 field season, are also included within the section entitled Observations (field notes). Prior to this investigation, no thorough measurements had been made of sediment transport in the northern Ellesmere Island region, and indeed, even the approximate magnitude of stream discharge from the study watershed was completely unknown. These uncertainties precluded the a priori design of a field sampling program. Consequently, over the three seasons of fieldwork, considerable methodological changes improved both the accuracy and temporal resolution of sediment flux measurements. (TABLE: sediment transport data collection)