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Breakup newsletter grows in popularity
Scientists and citizens monitor ice to put out near-daily updates on Mackenzie River during spring

Shawn Giilck
Northern News Services
Published Thursday, May 2, 2013

INUVIK
Those wanting to keep an eye on the ice around Inuvik don't have to stand outside on the riverbank. They can just subscribe to a newsletter.

NNSL photo/graphic

Dustin Whalen and Gwyn Lintern from Natural Resources Canada check ice conditions north of Inuvik in 2012. - photo courtesy of Dustin Whalen

Dustin Whalen is a physical scientist with Natural Resources Canada. He's one of the people in charge of a newsletter monitoring the spring breakup of the Mackenzie River ice. It's proven to be an enormously popular resource in the Inuvik and Beaufort Delta region.

He was in Inuvik recently for a presentation of the project's findings over the last seven years. He spoke to the Inuvik Drum last week as he began preparations for the spring breakup season, which looks as if it might be late this year.

"The talk highlighted our spring breakup research over the last seven years, where the first four years we conducted an extensive field program," he said. The newsletter was originally started by Steve Solomon to provide real-time feed back of his ice break-up research while in the field. The original distribution list was targeted towards interested colleagues and funding partners.

"It was soon evident that this information was important for a number of other stakeholders and community members … I can remember getting calls at night asking about the water levels in the delta and ice distribution along the coast. Due to the strong interest in our research we decided to publish a daily newsletter to the public highlighting our daily observations."

Gerry St. Amand is one of the most enthusiastic local contributors to the project.

"How I got my interest in following the ice movement from Natural Resources Canada was one spring breakup while at the cabin I got an e-mail from a fellow worker and he informed me of a site that gave daily updates about the ice/water conditions in the Mackenzie Delta," he said. "I sent out a request to be added to their e-mail list and soon enough I started to get the e-mails. Our cabin is seven miles northwest of Inuvik, "Slim" Semmler's old cabin, a "512," and I recently got Internet out there ... through New North Networks and it's good to have as it keeps me current to the ice/water conditions during this time of the season."

A "512" is one of the first houses built as Inuvik was constructed. The nickname derives from it being 512 square feet.

"I started to receive their e-mails in May of 2011," said St. Amand. "Steve Solomon was the main person in doing the e-mails and he had other inputs besides myself to complete the ice/water conditions. These other inputs came from Inuvik and Tuk, so they covered a vast area of ice movements. I benefit from these emails by learning where the ice jams are and how and where the water level is going to rise or fall. I mostly look at the ice jams as once they break, then they can cause a lot of damage, not to mention the high water levels that they cause."

The newsletter is a convenient way to tap into the interest and extensive knowledge that many local residents have about the river, Whalen said. A large number of residents use the river, mostly for recreation and transportation purposes.

Whalen said at the moment he couldn't predict when the breakup will begin this year. Due to budget cutbacks at Natural Resources Canada, the program hasn't done field work for three years.

"We have not been observing this data throughout the winter and could not speculate on the start of the breakup. However once the water starts to rise in the Mackenzie River in particular in our study area (north of Tsiigehtchic) we may be able to use data collected over the last seven years to speculate on the timing of breakup and occurrence of high water at Inuvik, Aklavik and parts of the outer delta."

The research has shown that the ice breakup generally occurs from May 20 to 26, but guessing the high water mark and flooding is less predictable.

He said the newsletter combines online data sources, observations from community members and "our own interpretations and experiences."

"We have been told that during the month of May and early June the spring ice breakup is one of the most talked-about subjects around the delta communities. There is a huge interest on when the channels will be ice free for boating and high water levels that may lead to unexpected flooding.

"The newsletter continues to gain interest among the communities, industry and other academic researchers. Right now the newsletter is distributed by e-mail to about 250 followers, and we are always eager to increase the distribution list.

"The first issue of the year is normally created the first week in May and continues on a near-daily basis until mid-June or until breakup is over. The newsletter is available to anyone who wants it, and we will accept contributions from anyone as well."

Whalen said the distribution list is solely advertised through word of mouth and the distribution list has grown at a rate of 40 to 50 people per year since the first one, in 2006.

"For those who receive it, the newsletter has become an important tool to monitor real-time conditions of the breakup for the Mackenzie Delta."

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