River regulation imposes direct changes on flow and sediment delivery, producing a suite of downstream responses in channel morphology. On the Peace River in northern British Columbia and Alberta, the W.A.C. Bennett hydroelectric dam has reduced peak flows while leaving sediment load effectively unchanged. My research aims to identify systematic, regulation-induced patterns of channel gradation in the mainstem Peace and its tributaries below the dam. The significance of regulation within the natural variability of basin hydrology is assessed by comparing actual regulated river flows to simulated flows based on reservoir level fluctuations. Mainstem bed elevation changes are assessed from repeatedly surveyed cross-sections and specific gauge records, supplemented by analysis of channel planform change. Results show degradation to be minimal, due to the naturally armoured gravel bed and elimination of competent flows. The predominant pattern in the upper regulated reaches is one of aggradation below tributary confluences and other sediment sources. In the long term, the Peace River may be raising its proximal bed to compensate for a loss of sediment transport capacity since regulation. Backchannel abandonment and other planform changes appear to be occurring more slowly, and may be less important to river slope adjustment. Data from the lower river are few and inconclusive. Tributary gradation was investigated by means of air photo, field surveys and dendrochronology of young floodplains. These methods reveal a range of responses to regulation, including degradation, aggradation and no apparent change. Degradation due to reduced tributary base level appears to attenuate downstream as the Peace River flood is restored by unregulated tributary flows, though this trend is complicated by other factors such as tributary sediment supply, flood timing between tributary and mainstem, and ice activity. Aggradation due to tributary fan growth may mitigate degradation; it is a less prominent response, though it appears to predominate in the lower Smoky River. Regulation is a secondary effect in the tributaries, and its influence on gradation has been limited. On the mainstem, however, it is a primary change, and the resulting channel gradation will take a long time to complete.

River regulation imposes direct changes on flow and sediment delivery, producing a suite of downstream responses in channel morphology. On the Peace River in northern British Columbia and Alberta, the W.A.C. Bennett hydroelectric dam has reduced peak flows while leaving sediment load effectively unchanged. My research aims to identify systematic, regulation-induced patterns of channel gradation in the mainstem Peace and its tributaries below the dam. The significance of regulation within the natural variability of basin hydrology is assessed by comparing actual regulated river flows to simulated flows based on reservoir level fluctuations. Mainstem bed elevation changes are assessed from repeatedly surveyed cross-sections and specific gauge records, supplemented by analysis of channel planform change. Results show degradation to be minimal, due to the naturally armoured gravel bed and elimination of competent flows. The predominant pattern in the upper regulated reaches is one of aggradation below tributary confluences and other sediment sources. In the long term, the Peace River may be raising its proximal bed to compensate for a loss of sediment transport capacity since regulation. Backchannel abandonment and other planform changes appear to be occurring more slowly, and may be less important to river slope adjustment. Data from the lower river are few and inconclusive. Tributary gradation was investigated by means of air photo, field surveys and dendrochronology of young floodplains. These methods reveal a range of responses to regulation, including degradation, aggradation and no apparent change. Degradation due to reduced tributary base level appears to attenuate downstream as the Peace River flood is restored by unregulated tributary flows, though this trend is complicated by other factors such as tributary sediment supply, flood timing between tributary and mainstem, and ice activity. Aggradation due to tributary fan growth may mitigate degradation; it is a less prominent response, though it appears to predominate in the lower Smoky River. Regulation is a secondary effect in the tributaries, and its influence on gradation has been limited. On the mainstem, however, it is a primary change, and the resulting channel gradation will take a long time to complete. / Arts, Faculty of / Geography, Department of / Graduate

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

The specific objective of this study was to determine the most profitable use of agricultural resources for the median farmer in the Peace River block of British Columbia. The tool to determine this objective was Linear Programming. Fifteen activities were selected for consideration within the program. These were: four crop rotations; cow-calf; cow-yearling; four beef feedlot activities; pasture finishing of beef; confinement rearing of lambs; conventional rearing of lambs; farrow to finish swine; and finishing swine. The restraints on these activities were 480 acres of cultivated land, a sum of capital equal to $70,000 less the cost of the land, and four 780 hour labour periods. To account for disparities in the agriculture within the region, nine linear program matrices were constructed to reflect conditions documented for nine districts within the Peace River. Because no consistent data base was found to exist the author carried out a literature search to select the "best data" available for the purposes of this study. Once the data base was constructed and the programs run, the results were analysed. All nine programs called for the finishing of beef cattle using purchased high moisture barley ensiled, purchased hay, supplement, and other feedstuffs. Five of the programs also called for finishing beef cattle on pasture with purchased grain fed free choice but restricted with animal tallow. The Gross Margins resulting from these activities ranged from $19,082. to $33,936. The importance of these results lies in the fact that all crop activities which currently dominate the agricultural economy were rejected. Thus, if the median farmer is to achieve optimality, he must radically change his technology. The type of change recommended by this study is the most difficult to achieve. It calls for a concerted effort by provincial extension personnel to provide educational programs which encourage and facilitate the acceptance of such change. / Land and Food Systems, Faculty of / Graduate

The strata of the Peace River coalfield, in the Foothills of northeasten British Columbia, formed in a tectonically active region near the western margin of the craton. The complex pattern of intertonguing marine and non-marine strata which resulted was subsequently deformed by folding and thrusting, making interpretation and correlation extremely difficult. The present palynologic study was undertaken in an attempt to resolve some of the stratigraphic problems, where sedimentological and geophysical methods have failed. The primary aim of the study is to generate a composite palynologic section that can be used to zone, correlate and date the coal-bearing strata in the southern half of the coalfield. Eleven drill holes representing nearly 3000 meters of section from the Gething, Moosebar and Gates formations were sampled at 15 meter intervals. The 199 samples examined for palynomorphs yielded a total assemblage containing 232 pollen and spore species, 96 dinoflagellate and acritarch species and 22 algal cyst and fungal spore species. 256 of the 350 species are restricted in their occurrence within the section, and have been used to zone and correlate the strata. Open marine, restricted marine and non-marine horizons are identified on the basis of type and relative abundance of palynomorphs. Contact relationships are examined and clarified, the palynologic section is compared with lithologic information, and a geologic age is established for the rocks. The Gething Formation consists of a thin basal marine unit, overlain by a thick non-marine succession characterized by poor preservation of palynomorphs, and two clearly defined marine tongues which occur in the northern and upper half of the formation. The marine unit at the base of the unit defines the Gething-Cadomin contact. The marine tongues near the top of the formation are palyno-logically distinct from the overlying marine strata of the Moosebar Formation, and represent a unique transgressive phase. The lower half of the Moosebar Formation consists of marine shales, with an abundant and diverse assemblage of dinocysts and acritarchs, representing open marine conditions for most of this phase of deposition. The upper half of the formation consists of a palynologically barren, coarsening-upward sequence which is interpreted as a relatively high energy (non-marine) regressive phase. The Gates Formation consists of a complex pattern of intertonguing marine and non-marine strata. The lower half of the Gates is open marine in the region of Bullmoose Mt., and intertonguing marine and non-marine in the region from Wolverine River to Monkman Pass. In the southeast, the terrestrial strata occurs between two resticted marine zones which are continuous with the open marine strata to the northwest. The restricted marine unit which underlies the terrestrial strata, has been previously identified in whole or in part as the 'Torrens Member', and is considered here to be part of the Gates Formation on the basis of palynologic evidence. The basal marine/non-marine unit is overlain by a middle terrestrial and middle marine unit, and an upper terrestrial and upper marine unit. The entire Gething through Gates section is middle Albian to early late Albian in age, based on the first appearance of early angiosperm monocolpate and tricolpate grains. / Science, Faculty of / Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of / Graduate

This thesis advances a conceptual model of adaptive impact monitoring that is designed to overcome many of the criticisms plaguing conventional monitoring strategies. The potential for applying the adaptive model is demonstrated for the Peace River Site C dam proposed for northeastern British Columbia. Environmental impact assessment (EIA) has progressed considerably from its early biophysical orientation to a more comprehensive, interdisciplinary process concerned with the breadth of environmental and socio-economic impacts of development. Impact monitoring, an essential EIA component, has also progressed but in a less innovative fashion. Consequently, conventional monitoring strategies often contain significant deficiencies including insufficient use of past experience, poor monitoring design, and failure to recognize the learning opportunity offered by each project. Adaptive impact monitoring offers significant advantages over traditional strategies. An adaptive strategy is based on a series of impact hypotheses established and tested by an interdisciplinary design team and has two fundamental stages: design and evaluation. A review of the potential environmental impacts of hydroelectric production indicates that the reservoir impact paradigm is beginning to provide a comprehensive basis for assessing development effects. Although the Site C EIA adequately reflects the reservoir impact paradigm, it has three significant weaknesses. First, the potential impacts on downstream ecology and distant downstream users are ill-considered. Second, the potential for increased Site C fisheries parasitism is neglected. Finally, estimates of maximum sustainable yield for the Site C reservoir and Peace River fisheries are unreliable. While opportunities for future impact monitoring were recognized through the Site C panel hearings, they lacked flexibility. The potential impacts on downstream water temperature and fisheries resources are used to illustrate the applicability of the adaptive strategy and the advantages derived from collecting only relevant, statistically credible data to permit testing impact hypotheses in a cost-effective manner. On the basis of these findings, six major policy recommendations are provided for improving the effectiveness of impact monitoring and management for future resource developments. / Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies / Graduate

No description available.

In-Situ Combustion (ISC) is a very complex thermal recovery process that is strongly affected by the chemical composition and physical properties of reservoir rock and fluids. Stability of the process depends on the amount of heat continuously generated from the chemical reactions between fuel formed during ISC and injected oxygen. Heat generation depends on the amount of fuel formed, which, in turn, is affected by initial oil saturation (IOS). Thus, in this study, ISC process dynamics were investigated at various saturations on 7.5 °API Peace River bitumen, under 3.4 l/min air injection rate. Through one-dimensional combustion tube experiments higher combustion front temperatures were observed for increased IOS. The degree of bitumen upgrading was determined in terms of viscosity and API gravity changes. Correlations for hydrogen-carbon ratio, air requirement, consumed fuel, and combustion front velocity were obtained. Good burning characteristics of Peace River bitumen resulted in stable self-sustained combustion with 26.01% IOS. However, an experiment with 13.39% IOS failed because of insufficient fuel generation. Furthermore, X-Ray cross-sectional images were taken along the combustion tube after each run to support and enhance the interpretation of experimental results. Particularly, fluctuations in concentrations of produced gas composition were explained with computed tomography (CT) data.