Renata Paluszkiewicz

Variability of Water Chemistry in Tundra Lakes, Petuniabukta Coast, Central Spitsbergen, Svalbard

Samples of water from small tundra lakes located on raised marine terraces on the eastern coast of Petuniabukta (Ebbadalen, Central Spitsbergen) were examined to assess the changes in water chemistry that had occurred during the summer seasons of 2001–2003 and 2006. The unique environmental conditions of the study region include the predominance of sedimentary carbonate and sulphate rocks, low precipitation values, and an active permafrost layer with a maximum thickness of 1.2 m. The average specific electric conductivity (EC) values for the three summer seasons in the four lakes ranged from 242 to 398 μS cm−1. The highest EC values were observed when the air temperature decreased and an ice cover formed (cryochemical effects). The ion composition was dominated by calcium (50.7 to 86.6%), bicarbonates (39.5 to 86.4%), and sulphate anions. The high concentrations of HCO3 −, SO4 2−, and Ca2+ ions were attributed to the composition of the bedrock, which mainly consists of gypsum and anhydrite. The average proportion of marine components in the total load found in the Ebbadalen tundra lake waters was estimated to be 8.1%. Precipitation supplies sulphates (as much as 69–81%) and chlorides (14–36%) of nonsea origin. The chief source of these compounds may be contamination from the town of Longyearbyen. Most ions originate in the crust, the active layer of permafrost, but some are atmospheric in origin and are either transported or generated in biochemical processes. The concentrations of most components tend to increase during the summer months, reaching a maximum during freezing and partially precipitating onto the bottom sediments.

The Developmental Stages of An Accumulative Cone of Dry Valley as an Indication of Change in Natural Environment Conditions (Western Pomerania)

Abstract The aim of this paper is to present the stages of development of an alluvial cone as an indication of change in natural environment conditions. a detailed research was conducted within the upland regions of Drawsko Lakeland. At the valley mouth of one of the erosional-denudational valleys an alluvial cone in question splays out. The imparity between the capacity of the erosional-denudational valley and the capacity of the alluvial cone indicates that the main stage of erosion had taken place before the cone’s deposition. During the beginning stage the material acquired from the dissection was most likely delivered directly to the channel of Dębnica river and was incorporated in the fluvial transport. The cone was formed during the later stage. The results of the radiocarbon analyses reveal that the formation of the alluvial cone and the valley associated with the cone took place during the Subatlantic. It was also estimated that the cone aggraded with the rate of approximately 3,9 mm per year

Erosional-denudational valleys and their significance for the reconstruction of the Late Glacial environmental conditions (The Drawsko Lakeland, NW Poland)

Erosional-denudational valleys and their significance for the reconstruction of the Late Glacial environmental conditions (The Drawsko Lakeland, NW Poland) The article presents the morphological-lithological development and operation of dry erosional-denudational valleys located on morainic uplands in the Drawsko Lakeland. A detailed research was carried out on the morainic upland of the Buślarka and Piaski Pomorskie area. A geodetic study made it possible to identify over ten NW-SE and N-S oriented erosional-denudational valleys, clearly marked in the relief. They are small landforms: their length does not exceed 100 m, and the depth of incision reaches 4 m. Their exact morphometric description with the help of GIS methods and a detailed study of lithofacies characteristics of their deposits provided an insight into their operation. They follow a Late Glacial pattern in which Late Vistulian erosion only rejuvenated the already existing older forms.

The evolution of a Weichselian proglacial lake in NW Poland as revealed by static penetration tests

The evolution of a Weichselian proglacial lake in NW Poland as revealed by static penetration tests The lithology, structure and geophysical characteristics of the glaciolacustrine clays deposited in the Wierzchowo proglacial lake were determined using static penetration tests (CPTU) in combination with standard lithological measurements. The deposits are divided into four lithological units (R1 to R4) on the basis of overconsolidation. Units R3 and R4 are separated by mass-flow deposits. The depositional conditions history of the lake result represent four phases: (1) an initial (low-energy) phase with the deposition of the rhythmically laminated sediments of units R1 and R2, which are divided by an erosional interval; (2) a phase of non-deposition with some desiccation structures and extended consolidation of sediments; (3) the main phase characterised by deposition of the rhythmically laminated sediments of unit R3; and finally, (4) the youngest phase, which represents alternations of deposition and erosion. The results show that sedimentation in the Wierzchowo proglacial lake was less continuous, and that the depositional processes were more complex than in the neighboring Złocieniec glacial lake.