Permafrost by Territory

Thaw slumps are landslides that take place in permafrost regions where the ground contains large volumes of ice. Unlike most landslides that develop quickly, these slumps grow slowly every year as the ground becomes exposed to the sun during the summer. Thaw slumps threaten Canada’s northern infrastructure and contribute to vast quantities of sediment and dissolved materials to water.

Gwich’in and Inuvialuit residents of communities in the Beaufort Delta region have reported an increase in the number of slumps, which has had consequences for travel and traditional hunting and fishing activities.

Using satellite imagery, Indigenous partners, scientists from the Northwest Territories Geological Survey, and the NWT Centre for Geomatics have mapped the abundance of thaw slumps and other permafrost landslides across northwestern Canada.