Quantitative sedimentological analysis of late quaternary glaciated basins

加拿大和北美北部的许多城市地区被冰川和间冰期条件下沉积的厚厚(高达200米)的第四纪沉积物所覆盖。这些沉积物形成了关于晚第四纪古环境和古气候变化的丰富信息，但对其来源或地下分布知之甚少。拟议的研究计划的目标是调查和解释安大略省南部地区的第四纪冰川地貌和地下地层学，使用‘传统’沉积学技术和最近开发的方法，这些方法包括对包含地质和地貌信息的数字数据库进行定量空间分析。这项研究将涉及对乔治敦、西姆科县和诺福克县地区的冰川地貌和暴露情况进行详细的实地调查，同时分析以前的钻孔、工程和施工报告以及环境部的水井记录所提供的现有岩芯和其他地下数据。这些数据将被输入一个数字数据库进行分析和建模，并将创建地下沉积物地层的三维地图。这些模型将大大提高对安大略省南部冰川沉积复杂序列的几何形状和特征以及它们所记录的以前环境条件的理解。这将是对冰川沉积学和第四纪古环境分析领域的重大贡献，并将增进我们对以前在大冰盖下活动的过程的性质的理解。拟议的研究对地方、区域和国家各级的环境问题也具有重要意义，因为它将制定一种建立地层模型的方法，可更广泛地应用于预测加拿大其他地方的含水层和地下水潜力。类似的冰川沉积序列广泛分布在北美北部的大片地区，是主要含水层系统的所在地，为900多万加拿大人提供饮用水。

Many urban areas in Canada and northern North America are underlain by thick (up to 200 m) successions of Quaternary sediment deposited under glacial and interglacial conditions. These sediments form a rich repository of information regarding late Quaternary paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatic change but relatively little is known of their origin or subsurface distribution. The objective of the proposed research program is to investigate and interpret the Quaternary glacial landforms and subsurface stratigraphies of the southern Ontario region using both 'traditional' sedimentological techniques and recently developed approaches that involve quantitative spatial analysis of digital databases containing geological and geomorphological information. This research will involve detailed field investigation of glacial landforms and exposures in the Georgetown, Simcoe County and Norfolk County regions in conjunction with analysis of available cores and other subsurface data available from previous boreholes, engineering and construction reports and the Ministry of Environment water well records. These data will be entered into a digital database to be analyzed and modeled and three dimensional maps of the subsurface sediment stratigraphies will be created. These models will significantly enhance understanding of the geometry and characteristics of the complex successions of glacial deposits that underlie southern Ontario and the former environmental conditions they record. This will be a substantive contribution to the field of glacial sedimentology and Quaternary paleoenvironmental analysis and will improve our understanding of the nature of former processes that operated beneath large ice sheets. The proposed research also has significance for environmental issues at local, regional and national scales as it will develop a methodology for the creation of stratigraphic models that can be more broadly applied to the prediction of aquifers and groundwater potential elsewhere in Canada. Similar successions of glacial deposits are widespread over large areas of northern North America and are host to major aquifer systems that supply more than 9 million Canadians with drinking water.