The northwest quarter of Whitehorse map-area occupies about 1000 square miles in southwestern Yukon. The southwest part of the area lies within the Coast Range and the northern and eastern parts are in the Yukon Plateau but the boundary between these physiographic provinces is very indefinite and the physiography of the area is best classed as transitional. The valleys are mostly broad and steep walled; a few are narrow and U-shaped. The plateau or upland surface, found throughout most of the Yukon Plateau, is here represented by broad ridges and by a few small tablelands averaging 5000 to 6000 feet in altitude, and these are surmounted by groups of mountains up to about 7000 feet in altitude. Some of the mountains have mature profiles but others, showing the effects of glacial erosion, are more rugged. During the Pleistocene the area was overridden by an icesheet to an altitude of at least 6000 feet but, except for cirques on some of the mountains, most evidence of glacial erosion is confined to the valleys and ridges below 5500 feet above sea level. The oldest rocks exposed in the area are Upper Triassic sediments and volcanics of the Lewes River series. They are overlain, apparently with slight unconformity, by Jurassic clastic sediments of the Laberge series. A small area of coal-bearing rocks probably belongs to the Tantalus formation. Acid and basic volcanics of the Hutshi group overlie the Laberge series unconformably along the northern border of the area. Rocks of all the above groups are intruded by the Coast Range granitic intrusions. Greenstones and more highly metamorphosed rocks associated with the main intrusive complex appear to have been derived mainly from the Lewes River series. Flows of fresh basalt exposed in the southern part of the area are believed to be Tertiary in age. The second part of the report deals with weathered granitic rocks found near Whitehorse. The weathering, which in some places extends several tens of feet below the outcrop surface, has resulted mainly in mechanical breakdown of the rocks through the development of fractures, although there has also been a little decomposition such as clouding of feldspars and rusting of biotite. The fracturing and decomposition shown by six weathered samples is described in detail in the report. Evidence regarding the relation of the weathering to the glaciation is inconclusive and hence it is not known if the weathering is connected with the cool dry climate now prevailing at Whitehorse. Certain granitic rocks of the area appear to weather more readily than others. A study of mineralogy, texture and porosity of the main types of granitic rocks of the area shows that those granitic rocks that appear to be especially susceptible to weathering contain larger pores than less readily weathered granitic rocks, and it is suggested that this feature may partly explain the observed difference in weathering. / Science, Faculty of / Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of / Graduate

This study seeks to better understand the relationship between permafrost, elevation and vegetation cover, and to test the hypothesis that changes in mountain permafrost distribution and characteristics occur at vegetation type boundaries, as they do in latitudinal permafrost. Twelve electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) surveys were completed at vegetation transitions on selected slopes near Whitehorse and Dawson, Yukon, in July 2015. Wenner arrays with 2 m spacing between electrodes were used to complete the 80-280 m long surveys. Organic layer thickness and vegetative species composition were recorded in a transect for each survey. Ground-truthing via frost probing, pit digging, and ground temperature data from past and present weather stations aided in the analysis of ERT profiles. Several different resistivity patterns are present along the profiles. These patterns indicate some presence of permafrost along most of the slopes sampled. Exceptions include south-facing slopes free of permafrost and a few slopes with inconclusive resistivity interpretations due to complex resistivity patterns and ground-truthing difficulties. Overall, the results indicate that changes in permafrost distribution and characteristics do not consistently occur at vegetation type boundaries. At the scale examined, treeline is not as important a demarcation point for changes in permafrost as initially thought. Changes in organic mat, surficial geology, and snow cover (via micro-topography) appear to be as important as vegetation variation. These local controls play a significant role on permafrost distribution across both altitudinal and latitudinal forest-tundra ecotones. However, the propensity of alpine environments for cold air drainage and surface lapse rate inversions can create differences between the permafrost trends across altitudinal and latitudinal ecotones.

Rural settlements in the Yukon differ from their southern counterparts in that they are characterized by a number of factors such as: geographic isolation, social division of the settlement along White-Indian ethnic lines and political isolation in that many communities have no local mechanism for formulating representative inputs to senior levels of government. These conditions have given rise to difficulties in the administering of rural community' affairs. Residents of these settlements expressed discontent with the way in which community related decisions were made without their involvement. Government agencies on the other hand are confronted with conflicting inputs formulated by individuals or groups from communities so that determining what is representative of the settlement is not an easy task. The thesis addresses the problems of local participation in the governing of community affairs in six similar, ethnically mixed rural Yukon communities. A five month research program during which interviews were conducted and observations recorded and the author's three year residency in one of the settlements studied, provided the material for the descriptive section of the thesis. Descriptions of the socio-political character of six settlements and their relationships with senior government and descriptions of the government agencies which frequently interact of proposed local governments. A tentative proposal of local circulated among respondents in rural communities. Responses to the questionnaire, in addition to responses to questions about the existing type of local government provide a basis for the analysis. The analysis conducted in the thesis indicates that a type of local government with specified form, functions, and role are not flexible enough to encompass the diversity which exists among inferences from these findings are that the Territorial Government should formulate the guidelines for local government allowing the specifics to be worked out between the Territorial Government and the residents of each rural settlement so that the particular local government is perceived as appropriate to the socio-political character of the community. In closing, the thesis discusses the implications of these findings may hold for the development of local government in general. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

Cambrian (?) schists and phyllites of the Anvil Range, Yukon Territory, host three large stratabound lead-zinc deposits: Faro, Vangorda, and Swim. Because geological exploration is limited by a thick cover of glacial overburden, geochemical techniques were tested in the area. These include bedrock sampling for primary halos and geochemical marker horizons, and glacial overburden sampling for secondary dispersion patterns. Multi-element geochemistry of bedrock indicates that the schists and phyllites are not distinctive in one or any combination of the trace elements analyzed. However, some younger rocks are enhanced in various elements: amphibolite in Ni, Cr, Co, and Cu; rhyolite in Pb and Sn; and granite in Sn. Despite presence of glacial overburden, the trace element content of bedrock is reflected in soils. Soils overlying magnetic greenstones are enriched in Ni and Cu, whereas soils overlying granite are slightly enriched in Sn content. Detailed bedrock, overburden and soil sampling.at the Faro deposit reveals that primary Pb, Zn, Mo, and Ba halos exist about the ore zone. Mo parallels the visible alteration envelope, but Pb and Zn extend 100 feet into the hanging wall and 300 feet into the footwall. Ba extends 75 feet into the hanging wall but is not detected in the footwall. Secondary dispersion patterns are primarily related to the proximity of the Faro ore zone and type of parent material sampled. Till deposits have higher background and threshold values for Cu, Pb, and Zn than those of glaciofluvial deposits. Bath Pb and Zn distributions in overburden delineate the Faro #2 ore body; Zn extends to surface whereas Pb, in some cases, does not. This is a reflection of the type of overburden sampled. In general, Zn is the more consistent indicator of ore. The Zn anomaly is primarily hydromorphic in origin, cxZn having higher anomalous/threshold contrast than total Zn (11.1 for cxZn vs 4.8 for total Zn). The nature of the Pb anomaly is not understood. / Science, Faculty of / Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of / Graduate

Multifractional analysis for scheelite (G=5.9-6.1), magnetite (G=5.2), heavies (G>3.3), mediums (3.3<G<2.9), and lights (G<2.9), in drainage sediments downstream of the Clea tungsten-bearing skarn deposit, Yukon Territory, revealed three interdependent problems that complicate interpretation of results of drainage surveys for W: (1) Scheelite concentrations in stream sediments reflect, in part, hydraulic sorting rather than source distribution. (2) Low numbers of scheelite grains in stream sediments cause high random sampling and subsampling errors and present analytical difficulties. (3) Scheelite/heavies or scheelite/mediums ratios may not be appreciably higher downstream of scheelite-bearing skarn than barren bedrock, because scheelite, heavies and mediums occur in increased amounts in skarns (i.e. they covary in source materials). Hydraulic effects result in systematic changes in mineral distributions between high and low energy environments (characterized by coarse gravel and fine gravel to sand, respectively). Scheelite, magnetite, heavies and mediums concentrations in minus 10-mesh sediments are greater in high than low energy environments, and this relative enrichment increases with grain size and density (up to one-hundredfold for scheelite). Using a regression method, developed in this study, hydraulically equivalent sizes of magnetite and heavies were empirically determined for finer (3.0-3.5 phi and 3.5-4.25 phi) scheelite sizes. Ratioing the weight of scheelite to that of a hydraulically equivalent mineral greatly reduces hydraulic variability. Resulting profiles of hydraulically equivalent scheelite concentrations more clearly delineate locations of scheelite input to the stream. The rare-grain problem can be reduced at the sampling level by sampling from high energy environments (thereby exploiting hydraulic effects) and/or by sampling for finer scheelite. Heavy mineral separation is the most effective means of reducing the rare grain problem at the subsampling and analytical levels. The problem of covariance in source materials can best be remedied by ratioing to an individual (hydraulically equivalent) heavy mineral which has a constant and ubiquitous distribution in the area of interest. In this study, magnetite shows promise, but more information on its source distribution is needed. / Science, Faculty of / Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of / Graduate

Dań Zhùr (Donjek) Glacier, located in the St. Elias Mountains, Yukon, is a surge-type glacier that undergoes cyclical periods of rapid advance over a period of ~1-2 years, followed by retreat for a period of ~10 years (Kochtitzky et al., 2019). Dań Zhùr Chù’ (Donjek River) runs perpendicular to the terminus of the glacier and past surges have, at times, caused the terminus to advance enough to block the river, leading to the formation of an ice-dammed lake (Kochtitzky et al., 2020). The glacier most recently surged between 2012 and 2014, and since then Dań Zhùr Lake has drained three times: in 2017, 2018 and 2019. When a glacier dam fails, the drainage of the lake can be catastrophic and cause flooding downstream. In the case of Dań Zhùr Lake, the most recent drainage event occurred on July 13th, 2019, when the ~2.45 km2 lake drained in less than 36 hours and created an ice canyon through the glacier terminus. Time-lapse cameras and pressure sensors were used to capture the drainage event, and air photos taken during the melt season (June and September) were used to construct digital elevation models (DEMs) of the glacier terminus, lake, and lake basin. The method of drainage for the 2019 event was determined to be flotation of the terminus, leading to rapid subglacial drainage of the lake. There were also noticeable changes in water extent downstream during the 2019 event, meaning that there is a potential risk to downstream recreational users. Because of the formation of a large ice canyon after the 2019 drainage, it is very unlikely that that the lake will reform until the next surge, which is anticipated to occur around 2024. Following that surge, the size of Dań Zhùr Lake is expected to increase during the next quiescent phase, as the continued glacier recession will expose a larger basin for the lake to form in, and flotation will continue to be a likely mechanism for drainage. However, in the long term it is unlikely that ice-dammed lakes will continue to form at Dań Zhùr Glacier, as there is a trend of the maximum terminus extent during each surge being smaller than the previous one, meaning that the glacier will no longer block the flow of Dań Zhùr Chù’.

This secondary data analysis used a cross-sectional survey of 1771 Yukon First Nations, Dene/Metis, and Inuit women. The aims were to evaluate access to traditional food (TF) and market food (MF), identify perceived advantages of TF and MF, and explore under-studied characteristics of FS in Arctic Canada. Results indicate considerable regional variation in ability to afford adequate food, varying between 26 and 58%. Similarly, regional variation was reflected in the percentage of women who had access to hunting or fishing equipment. Participants described culturally relevant FS indicators: food needed to be natural, fresh, tasty, varied, healthy, safe, accessible, and convenient. Between 10 and 38% of participants noticed recent changes in the quality or health of TFs. Caribou, moose, and seal were popular TFs and considered particularly healthy. This study emphasizes the importance of TF for Arctic indigenous women's FS and the dynamic nature of FS in this population.

No description available.

I argue that by understanding lithic technology as a total social fact, that is, as socially, culturally and politically constituted, it is possible to gain some insight into prehistoric social practice. An archaeological examination of the Nii 'ii site (KdVo-5), a prehistoric hunting stand locality in southwestern Yukon Territory, serves as a case study for this argument. Spatial reconstruction of this site indicates the presence of several social actors engaged in face-to-face interaction. Technological analysis of the lithic assemblage demonstrates that the observed variability in tool forms cannot be explained solely in terms of tool function; instead, it appears that the technical choices made by the occupants of KdVo-5 were socially and culturally mediated. I outline a theory of technological practice, based on practice-oriented social theory, in an attempt to understand the importance of these technical choices in the construction of social relationships at Nii 'ii.

For many women, body weight is a health concern both in relation to physical health and to social and psychological health. Both overweight and underweight are associated with increased risks to health. Furthermore, the literature largely supports the view that sociological and psychological factors influence a woman's perception of weight and body image. In the Western world, weight loss efforts among women are high, and even those who are within or below the healthy weight range are trying to lose weight. Relatively little is known about weight loss efforts among Yukon women.. Moreover, it is not known whether societal pressures surrounding weight are similar in the Yukon and the rest of Canada. For reasons related mainly to its northern geographical location and culture, and because of the health implications related to women's weight issues, this study was conducted to determine the prevalence of Yukon women trying to lose weight; to determine the weight loss practices of Yukon women; and to compare the characteristics of women who are trying to lose weight vs. those who are not; women who are satisfied with their weight vs. those who are not; and women who are at health risk due to overweight or underweight vs. those with healthy weights. Data for a representative sample of non-pregnant, non-institutionalized women > 15 years of age (n=711) were obtained from the population-based 1993 Yukon Health Promotion Survey. Those living in the census unorganized portions of the Yukon were not included in the sample. The prevalence of weight loss efforts in the Yukon (51.8%) was higher than the published value for women in the rest of Canada (39%). Among Yukon women with body mass index (BMI) values classified as overweight, possible overweight, healthy weight, and underweight, 80%, 67%, 46%, and 9%, respectively, were trying to lose weight. The corresponding values for the rest of Canada are lower. The most frequent weight loss practices were dieting (35.8%), changing diet and exercise (26.1%), and sensible eating (17.2%). Compared to women not trying to lose weight, women trying to lose weight were younger (35.8 ± 13.2 vs 38.6 ± 15.0 yr, P<0.01), were more likely to be employed (71.6% vs 64%, P<0.05), had higher BMI values (25.7 ± 4.1 vs 22.3 ± 3.9 kg/m2, P<0.0001), and were more likely to be dissatisfied with their current weight (88.5% vs 35.6%, P<0.0001). Both groups reported similar food consumption and activity patterns, yet women trying to lose weight had more positive nutrition behaviours and health knowledge. The mean eating knowledge index (EKI) score was significantly higher (2.36 ± 2.89) for women trying to lose weight than for women not trying to lose weight (1.75 ± 3.44). Similarly, the mean eating behaviour index (EBI) score was higher (4.19 ± 3.83 vs. 3.46 ± 4.94, respectively). Weight loss efforts did not appear to be related to the Yukon environment since neither First Nations status nor length of residence in the Yukon varied for women trying to lose weight and women not trying to lose weight. Yukon women who were overweight were less likely to live in Whitehorse, were older, were more likely to be poor, and were less likely to engage in vigorous physical activity three or more times per week compared to those with healthy weights; however, their food consumption patterns and nutrition knowledge and behaviour scores did not differ. Overweight women expressed less satisfaction with their quality of life and with their physical health and social relationships. Yukon women who were underweight were more likely to be poor and to find it difficult to afford the basic necessities and less likely to indicate they were eating well enough to maintain good health compared to healthy weight women. Both groups had similar activity patterns and food consumption patterns; yet, underweight women had lower scores for nutrition knowledge and behaviour (EKI: 1.03 ± 2.97 vs. 2.38 ± 3.24; EBI: 2.68 ± 4.71 vs. 4.07 i 4.51). Underweight women and healthy weight women rated their quality of life similarly. Based on this study, it appears that many Yukon women, regardless of weight status, are engaging in weight loss efforts. Furthermore, the goal of losing weight, rather than relative weight status, seems to be an important motive for healthy eating and for seeking health knowledge. Being physically active in the Yukon appears to be influenced by time of year and other barriers. Self-ratings of health were associated with engaging in weight loss efforts and with relative weight status. Overall, the findings of this study suggest that weight loss efforts of Yukon women are similar to those of the dominant Western society. In view of the findings of this study, health promotion messages should incorporate healthy eating, regular physical activity, and the concept of healthy weight and positive body image to deter weight loss efforts among women who do not need to lose weight. Tailored approaches which consider the different characteristics of the groups in this study may prove to be useful.