Winter chemistry of North Slope lakes

Lakes are important water resources on the North Slope of Alaska. Oilfield exploration and production requires water for facility use as well as transportation. Ice road construction requires winter extraction of fresh water. Since most North Slope lakes are relatively shallow, the quantity and quality of the water remaining under the ice by the end of the winter are important environmental management issues. Currently permits are based on the presence of overwintering fish populations and their sensitivity to low oxygen. Sampling during the winter of 2004 2005 sheds light on the winter chemistry of several pumped lakes and one unpumped lake on the North Slope. Dissolved oxygen, conductivity, pH, and temperature profiles were taken along with ice thickness and water depth measurements. Water samples were extracted and analyzed for Na, Ca, K, Mg, Fe, DOC, and alkalinity in the laboratory. Lake properties, rather than pumping activities, were the best predictors of oxygen depletion, with the highest levels of dissolved oxygen maintained in the lake with the least dissolved constituents. As would be expected, specific conductance increased with depth in the lake while dissolved oxygen decreased with depth. Dissolved oxygen and specific conductance data suggested that the lakes began to refresh in May. The summarized data provides a view of North Slope lake chemistry trends, while continued studies investigate the chemical impacts of pumping North Slope lakes through continued sampling and modeling efforts.