Download Taiga Cordillera

Luke Sirna
The Taiga Cordillera is
located along the
Northwest Territories/
Yukon Border and
continues into Alaska.
Towards the south of the
Taiga Cordillera, there is a
higher elevation, which are
the rocky mountains. The
North is flatter, and is
bordered by the Tundra.
Climate
• The Taiga Cordillera gets about 200mm of
precipitation per year
• The winters are long, cold and dark
• The summers are short and cool
• The average temperature in winter is -10C
• The average summer temperature is 10C
• Although the Taiga Cordillera is very far north, it
is warmer than a Tundra
• The Rocky Mountains shield the Taiga from cold
Pacific Ocean air
In the mountainous
south there are Dall’s
sheep, mountain
goats, and grizzly
bears
Fauna
In the north there
caribou, moose,
coyote, red fox,
mink, wolverine,
lynx, martin, hoary
marmot and black
bears
Bird species
include, gyrfalcon,
golden eagle, bald
eagles, osprey, and
northern, goshawk
Wetlands in The Biome
The Rivers as well as the northern Arctic Ocean
in the Taiga Cordillera are home to water fowl like
canvasback, the common golden eye, the
trumpeter swan and the mallard duck.
Some fish that live there are, chum
salmon, Chinook salmon, white fish, lake
dub, arctic char, northern pike.
Flora
In the south, lichens,
sedges and mosses
cover the ground. There
is permafrost in the area
near the Tundra.
In the north, there are
more alpine fir, willow,
and birch shrubs. All
trees are coniferous.
Symbiotic Relationships
• The Black Spruce needs lichens to
decompose the dead wood
• This cleans the tree and makes it healthier
• The lichens get their food from this.
Threats And Human Activities
In the Yukon, there are only 28, 294
people living in the Taiga Cordillera.
Hunting, fishing and trapping is not an
issue; all activities like this are
subsistence only.
One major concern is the decomposition
of wastes. Most waste is burned.
Adventure Tourism
• Adventure tourism brings large numbers of
people to remote areas
• Waste is not taken care of and is a danger
to the ecosystem
• Humans may disturb animals habitats,
with camping grounds, or on tours
Mines
• There most prominent threat to the
Taiga Cordillera is mines
• One example is Giant Mine
• Giant mine was closed in 1992, but
there are chemicals stored in the empty
mine shafts
• The chemical is arsenic trioxide, and is a
bi-product in gold and copper refining
(and also produced through combustion
of arsenic)
• It was originally though that the ground
would be frozen solid all year
• Due to global warming, the arsenic
trioxide may enter the soil, or worse the
water table.
• Although not located in The Yukon, Giant
Mine is located in the North West
Territories, and is a threat to the Boreal
Forest Biome
• In the Giant Mine, there 270,000 tonnes of
arsenic trioxide in Giant mine
• There are four other mines located in the
Taiga Cordillera, including the largest mine
called Dawson Mine
• Gold and copper are mined at the Dawson
Mine
Giant Mine Contamination
• Arsenic trioxide is soluble in water
• Arsenic trioxide is usually absorbed by the
digestive system
• It may be absorbed through the skin
• Arsenic trioxide is lethal as it builds up in
the body
Logging
• The logging industry plays a very small
role in the Taiga Cordillera
• The majority of logging threats are in
Alaska
• There are Canadian restrictions on logging
in protected areas
Invasive Species
• The fewest invasive species are found in the
Taiga Cordillera and the Tundra Cordillera
• Most invasive species in Taiga Cordillera are
plant species
• It is estimated that there are between 7 and
20 invasive species in the Taiga Cordillera
• Foxtail barley and white sweetclover are the
most distructive
Invasive Plants
• Foxtail Barley looks nice, but can get
caught in the eyes and throats of many
small animals
• White Sweetclover can grow up to 2
meters high in drained areas, but takes all
moisture out of the soil, choking out other
plants
Phytoremediation with Arsenic
Phytoremediation is removing
contaminants from the soil through
the use of plants.
• There is now more
research regarding
phytoremediation and
arsenic
• Scientists are using
Chinese brake ferns,
which can store the
arsenic in their shoots
• These plants may not be
able to survive in the
taiga cordillera
Bioremediation with Arsenic
• Bioremediation removes contaminants
through microbiological metabolism
• Research has found that iron oxidizing
bacteria have the ability to metabolize
arsenic
• Bioremediation is sometimes avoided
because it may effect the balance of the
ecosystem in other ways
Solutions
• The city of Yellowknife is paying $400
million to clean up Giant Mine
• The Frozen Block Alternative will keep the
arsenic trioxide chambers frozen
• The US Government made State Parks in
Alaska, such as Denali Park thus
restricting logging
• More national parks will be created
There are new laws regarding waste
management in Nahanni National Park
Reserve, Aualvik National Park, and Vuntut
National Park
Aualvik National Park
Nahanni National Park
Global Warming
• There is an extending tree line, and
lichens are starting to move farther north
• Species may become extinct with loss of
habitat
• More ecofriendly choices can be made,
with appropriate disposal of chemicals,
and housing materials and with water
management programs
Summary
• The Taiga Cordillera has been pretty well
preserved
• What has been damaged in now being
repaired
• Companies and the government learn
from areas like Giant Mine and use them
as examples of how mines should operate
in the future
The Future
• After the Taiga Cordillera has been
repaired, we need to ensure more
precautions are taken to keep it
sustainable
• Adventure tourism and pollution should be
kept to a minimum
Bibliography
Research:
Statscan.gc.ca/pub/162011_x
Candianbiodiversity.mcgill.ca/english/taigacordill
era
Ecosys.cfl.sct.gc.ca/classification/classif07
91middleschoolscience.wikispaces.com
Fs.fed.us/sweet-clover
Environmentyukon.gov.yk.ca/pdf/invasivespecies
Biology-online.org/articles/microbiology/
Ncib.hlm.nih.gov.pubmed
Lenntech.com/period.2
Text References:
World Book Encyclopedia – 2007 – B – Boreal Forest
Bioremediation and Groundwater Recovery – by: Anastasios Zouboulis –
Aristotle University
Bibliography cont’d
Pictures:
Ecozones.ca
Canadianbiomes.mcgill.cas/english/ecozones
Ecosys.clf.scf.mcan.gc.ca/classification/classif07
Glassesglasses.org
Sustainability.hinga.com/wp_content
Enrgow.nt/_live?images
Nationalgeoraphics.com/statcfile
Policyreshearch.gc.ca/doclip
Seafoodfromnorway.com/binary
Fernridgefarms.com