Parks Canada focuses its tourism and conservation efforts in Kouchibouguac National Park along the park's diverse coastline made up of a variety of sensitive ecosystems including salt marshes, stream estuaries and a shifting barrier island lagoon system. The dynamic sediment processes in the park are not fully understood, making it difficult for Parks Canada to make informed decisions as sea-level rise in the region accelerates. In this study, extensive field data were collected in two sediment zones bordering the Kouchibouguac Lagoon. Stream data were collected and used to estimate the monthly average sediment load entering the lagoon. The maximum and minimum monthly average sediment loads were 130 g/s and 11 g/s in April and September, respectively. These freshwater sediments pass through estuaries to deposit at the coastline of the park.
Changes in the barrier system surrounding the tidal inlet Little Gully were also monitored over 15 months using modern surveying techniques. The surveys showed a general southward shift in the study area and a landward migration of sediments within the flood tidal delta of the inlet. Dune surface area, volume, and vegetation cover were also examined, and the critical shear stress and velocity of the sediments were calculated. The field investigations revealed that the Kouchibouguac Lagoon was gradually filling in with sediments during the study. It is recommended that a permanent hydrometric station be installed in one of the major streams in the park and that future research along the coastline of the park complement Parks Canada's current monitoring program for the barrier island system.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:UNB.1882/35658 |
| Date | 01 January 2012 |
| Creators | Young, Adam |
| Contributors | University of New Brunswick, Faculty of Engineering, Haralampides, K. A. |
| Publisher | Fredericton: University of New Brunswick |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis or Dissertation |
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