Pilot Spots Landslide Blocking Johnson River NWT; As Permafrost Goes Expect Many More Slides
A power technician from Inuvik, N.W.T., says a massive landslide that pulled up chunks of debris "the size of houses" is blocking a waterway west of the Mackenzie River, creating a lake. Eric McLeod said he spotted the scene last week in the Johnson River, which is located between the communities of Wrigley and Tulita, N.W.T., and connects to the Mackenzie River. He estimates the landslide is about five kilometres from where the two rivers meet.
I've seen quite a few of these slides in the past and normally it's mostly mud and debris," McLeod said, "But in this case there were actually boulders … and there were still trees on them." "The amount of earth that moved was just awe-inspiring." McLeod has spent 15 years travelling to remote locations for his job. He credits a pilot with Great Slave Helicopters for pointing the scene out to him while they were flying over the area on March 1.
Landslides increasingly becoming common
Dennis Rusch, the helicopter company's base manager for the Sahtu region, said he discovered the landslide in late August or early September 2017, before any snow had fallen. He estimated the blockage in the Johnson River stretches 250 to 300 metres wide and is at least 300 to 400 metres long.
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(Ed. - Permafrost scientist Steve) Kokelj said data shows the level of activity and size of these "disturbances" are increasing in many parts of the lower Mackenzie Valley and throughout the N.W.T. "As the climate warms and permafrost temperatures rise and permafrost thaws, these types of phenomena will become more common," he said. "We need to expect that and anticipate that."
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http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/climate-landslide-nwt-1.4563635