Buried bedrock valleys and glacial and subglacial meltwater erosion in Southern Ontario, Canada

Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences

Volumn 48, Issue 5, 2011, Pages 801-818

  Gao, Cunhai ^a  

^a Ontario Geological Survey   (Canada)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

BEDROCK SURFACES; DIAGNOSTIC FEATURES; DRAINAGE SYSTEMS; GEOLOGICAL MAPPING; GLACIAL EROSION; GLACIAL MAXIMA; LAKE ONTARIO; LAURENTIAN; ONTARIO; ONTARIO , CANADA; PLEISTOCENE GLACIAL; PRECAMBRIAN; RIVER CHANNELS; SIMPLE MODIFICATIONS; SUBGLACIAL MELTWATER;

DRAINAGE; EROSION; FLOORS; GEOLOGICAL SURVEYS; GLACIAL GEOLOGY; GROUNDWATER; LAKES; SOIL MECHANICS; WATER LEVELS;

LANDFORMS;

BEDROCK; EROSION; GLACIAL ENVIRONMENT; LONGITUDINAL GRADIENT; MELTWATER; MORPHOMETRY; PALEOENVIRONMENT; PRECAMBRIAN; SLOPE; SUBGLACIAL ENVIRONMENT; TOPOGRAPHIC MAPPING; WEATHERING;

CANADA; ONTARIO [CANADA];

EID: 79960819693     PISSN: 00084077     EISSN: 14803313     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1139/e10-104     Document Type: Article

References (61)

1. Bajc, A.F., and Hunter, J.A. 2006. Results of 2003-2004 overburden drilling programs in the Region of Waterloo, southwestern Ontario. Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Release-Data 205.
2. Bajc, A.F., and Shirota, J. 2007. Three-dimensional mapping of surficial deposits in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, southwestern Ontario. Ontario Geological Survey, Groundwater Resources Study 3.
3. Bajc, A.F., Brunton, F.R., Priebe, E.H., MacCormack, K.E., and Bingham, M. 2009. An evaluation of deeply buried aquifers along the Dundas buried valley at Lynden and Copetown, southern Ontario. In Summary of field work and other activities 2009. Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 6240. pp. 24-1-24-6.
4. Barnett, P.J. 1992. Quaternary geology of Ontario. In Geology of Ontario. Ontario Geological Survey, Special Vol. 4, Part 2. pp. 1011-1090.
5. Boulton, G.S., and Hindmarsh, R.C.A. 1987. Sediment deformation beneath glaciers: rheology and geological consequences. Journal of Geophysical Research, 92(B9): 9059-9082. doi:10.1029/JB092iB09p09059.
6. Boyce, J.I., and Morris, W.A. 2002. Basement-controlled faulting of Paleozoic strata in southern Ontario, Canada: new evidence from geophysical lineament mapping. Tectonophysics, 353(1-4): 151-171. doi:10.1016/S0040-1951(02)00280-9.
7. Brennand, T.A., and Shaw, J. 1994. Tunnel channels and associated landforms, south-central Ontario: their implications for ice-sheet hydrology. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 31: 505-522.
8. Clayton, L., Attig, J.W., and Mickelson, D.M. 1999. Tunnel channels formed in Wisconsin during the last glaciation. In Glacial processes past and present. Edited by D.M. Mickelson and J.W. Attig. Geological Society of America, Boulder, Colo. pp. 69-82.
9. Coakley, J.P., Haras, W., and Freeman, N. 1973. The effect of storm surge on beach erosion, Point Pelee. In Proceedings of the 16th Conference on Great Lakes Research. International Association of Great Lakes Research. pp. 377-389.
10. Cutler, P.M., Colgan, P.M., and Mickelson, D.M. 2002. Sedimentologic evidence for outburst floods from the Laurentide ice sheet margin in Wisconsin, U.S.A: implications for tunnel-channel formation. Quaternary International, 90(1): 23-40. doi:10.1016/S1040-6182(01)00090-8.
11. Davies, S.D., and Holysh, S. 2005. An investigation of buried valley aquifer systems in the area north of Lake Ontario. In Summary of field work and other activities 2004. Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 6172. pp. 30-1 to 30-7.
12. Eyles, N., and Williams, N.G. 1992. The sedimentary and biological record of the last interglacial-glacial transition at Toronto, Canada. Geological Society of America, Special Paper 270. pp. 119-137.
13. Eyles, N., Clark, B.M., Kaye, B.G., Howard, K.W.F., and Eyles, C.H. 1985. The application of basin analysis techniques to glaciated terrains: an example from the Lake Ontario Basin, Canada. Geoscience Canada, 12: 22-32.
14. Eyles, N., Boyce, J., and Mohajer, A.A. 1993. The bedrock surface of the western Lake Ontario: evidence of reactivated basement structures? Géographie physique et Quaternaire, 47: 269-283.
15. Eyles, N., Arnaud, E., Scheidegger, A.E., and Eyles, C.H. 1997. Bedrock jointing and geomorphology in southwestern Ontario, Canada: an example to tectonic predesign. Geomorphology, 19(1-2): 17-34. doi:10.1016/S0169-555X(96)00050-5.
16. Feenstra, B.H. 1981. Quaternary geology and industrial minerals of the Niagara-Welland area, southern Ontario. Ontario Geological Survey, US. Geological Survey, Open-file Report 5361.
17. Fisher, T.G., Jol, H.M., and Boudreau, A.M. 2005. Saginaw Lobe tunnel channels (Laurentide Ice Sheet) and their significance in south-central Michigan, USA. Quaternary Science Reviews, 24(22): 2375-2391. doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2004.11.019.
18. Flint, J.J., and Lolcama, J. 1986. Buried ancestral drainage between Lake Erie andOntario.Geological Society of America Bulletin, 97(1): 75-84. doi:10.1130/0016-7606(1986)97<75:BADBLE>2.0.CO;2.
19. Gao, C. 2005. Ice-wedge casts in Late Wisconsinan glaciofluvial deposits, southern Ontario, Canada. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 42(12): 2117-2126. doi:10.1139/e05-072.
20. Gao, C., Shirota, J., Kelly, R.I., Brunton, F.R., and van Haaften, J.S. 2006. Bedrock topography and overburden thickness mapping, southern Ontario. Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Release-Data 207 [1 CD-ROM.]
21. Gao, C., Shirota, J., Kelly, R.I., Brunton, F.R., and van Haaften, J.S. 2007. Bedrock topography and overburden thickness mapping, southern Ontario. In Proceedings of the 60th Canadian Geotechnical Conference and the 8th joint Canadian Geotechnical Society - International Association of Hydrologists (CGS-IAH) Conference. Canadian Geotechnical Society, Ottawa, Ont. pp. 378-385.
22. Gilbert, R., and Shaw, J. 1994. Inferred subglacial meltwater origin of lakes on the southern border of the Canadian Shield. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 31(11): 1630-1637. doi:10.1139/e94-144.
23. Greenhouse, J.P., and Karrow, P.F. 1994. Geological and geophysical studies of buried valleys and their fills near Elora and Rockwood, Ontario. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 31: 1838-1848.
24. Hobson, G.D., and Terasmae, J. 1969. Pleistocene geology of the buried St. Davids Gorge, Niagara Falls, Ontario: geophysical and palynological studies. Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 68-87.
25. Holysh, S., Davies, S.D., and Goodyear, D. 2004. An investigation into buried valley aquifer systems in the Lake Simcoe area. In Summary of field work and other activities 2004. Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 6145. pp. 28-1-28-6.
26. Hooke, R.L., and Jennings, C.E. 2006. On the formation of the tunnel valleys of the southern Laurentide ice sheet. Quaternary Science Reviews, 25(11-12): 1364-1372. doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2006.01.018.
27. Horberg, L., and Anderson, R.C. 1956. Bedrock topography and Pleistocene glacial lobes in central United States. The Journal of Geology, 64(2): 101-116. doi:10.1086/626328.
28. Johnson, M.D., Armstrong, D.K., Sanford, B.V., Telford, P.G., and Rutka, M.A. 1992. Paleozoic and Mesozoic geology of Ontario. In Geology of Ontario. Ontario Geological Survey, Special Vol. 4, Part 2. pp. 907-1010.
29. Jørgensen, F., and Sandersen, P.B.E. 2006. Buried and open tunnel valleys in Denmark-erosion beneath multiple ice sheets. Quaternary Science Reviews, 25(11-12): 139-1363. doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2005.11.006.
30. Karrow, P.F. 1973. Bedrock topography in southwestern Ontario: a progress report. The Geological Association of Canada, Proceedings, Vol. 25. pp. 67-77.
31. Karrow, P.F., McAndrews, J.H., Miller, B.B., Morgan, A.V., Seymour, K.L., and White, O.L. 2001. Illinoian to late Wisconsinan stratigraphy at Woodbridge, Ontario. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 38(6): 921-942. doi:10.1139/cjes-38-6-921.
32. Kenny, F.M., Hunter, G., and Chan, P. 1997. Georeferencing quality control of Ontario's water well database for the Greater Toronto and Oak Ridges Moraine areas of southern Ontario. Proceedings of 1997 Canadian Geomatics Conference (GER' 97), Ottawa, Ont. Abstract 219.
33. Kor, P.S.G., and Cowell, D.W. 1998. Evidence for catastrophic subglacial meltwater sheetflood events on the Bruce Peninsula. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 35(10): 1180-1202. doi:10.1139/cjes-35-10-1180.
34. Kristensen, T.B., Huuse, M., Piotrowski, J.A., and Clausen, O.R. 2007. A morphometric analysis of tunnel valleys in the eastern North Sea based on 3D seismic data. Journal of Quaternary Science, 22(8): 801-815. doi:10.1002/jqs.1123.
35. Logan, C., Russell, H.A.J., and Sharpe, D.R. 2005. Regional 3-D structural model of the Oak Ridges Moraine and Greater Toronto Area, southern Ontario: version 2.1. Geological Survey of Canada, Open File 5062. [1 CD-ROM.]
36. MacCormack, K.E., Maclachlan, J.C., and Eyles, C.H. 2005. Viewing the subsurface in three dimensions: initial results of modeling the Quaternary sedimentary infill of the Dundas Valley, Hamilton, Ontario. Geosphere, 1(1): 23-31. doi:10.1130/GES00007.1.
37. Meyer, P.A., and Eyles, C.H. 2007. Nature and origin of sediments infilling poorly defined buried bedrock valleys adjacent to the Niagara Escarpment, southern Ontario, Canada. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 44(1): 89-105. doi:10.1139/E06-085.
38. Morgan, N.A. 1964. Geophysical studies in Lake Erie by shallow marine seismic methods. Ph.D. thesis, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ont.
39. Morgan, A.V. 1982. Distribution and probable age of relict permafrost features in southwestern Ontario. In Proceedings of the 4th International Permafrost Conference (the R.J.E. Brown memorial volume). National Research Council of Canada, Ottawa, Ont. pp. 91-100.
40. Mullins, H.T., and Hinchey, E.J. 1989. Erosion and infill of New York Finger Lakes: implications for Laurentide ice sheet deglaciation. Geology, 17(7): 622-625. doi:10.1130/0091-7613(1989)017<0622:EAIONY>2.3.CO;2.
41. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 1999. Bathymetry of Lake Erie and Lake Saint Clair. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Geophysical Data Center, World Data Center for Marine Geology and Geophysics, Report MGG-13 [Online]. Available from http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/greatlakes/erie.html [Cited on 10 October 2006].
42. Ontario Geological Survey. 1991. Bedrock geology of Ontario, southern sheet. Ontario Geological Survey, Map 2544, scale1: 1 000 000.
43. Ontario Geological Survey. 2003. Surficial geology of southern Ontario. Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Release-Data 128 [2 CD-ROMs.]
44. Pengelly, J.W., Tinkler, K.J., Parkins, W.G., and McCarthy, F.M. 1997. 12 600 years of lake level changes, changing sills, ephemeral lakes and Niagara Gorge erosion in the Niagara Peninsula and Eastern Lake Erie basin. Journal of Paleolimnology, 17(4): 377-402. doi:10.1023/A:1007946401036.
45. Piotrowski, J.A. 1997. Subglacial hydrology in north-western Germany during the last deglaciation; groundwater flow, tunnel valleys and hydrological cycles. Quaternary Science Reviews, 16(2): 169-185. doi:10.1016/S0277-3791(96)00046-7.
46. Praeg, D. 2003. Seismic imaging of mid-Pleistocene tunnel-valleys in the North Sea Basin-high resolution from low frequencies. Journal of Applied Geophysics, 53(4): 273-298. doi:10.1016/j.jappgeo.2003.08.001.
47. Russell, H.A.J., Brennand, T.A., Logan, C., and Sharpe, D.R. 1998. Standardization and assessment of geological descriptions from water well records: Greater Toronto and Oak Ridges Moraine areas, southern Ontario. In Current research. Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 1998-E. pp. 89-102.
48. Russell, H.A.J., Arnott, R.W.C., and Sharpe, D.R. 2003. Evidence for rapid sedimentation in a tunnel channel, Oak Ridges Moraine, southern Ontario, Canada. Sedimentary Geology, 160(1-3): 33-55. doi:10.1016/S0037-0738(02)00335-4.
49. Russell, H.A.J., Pullan, S.E., Hunter, J.A., Sharpe, D.R., and Holysh, S. 2006. Buried valley aquifers: new data collection for municipal water supply and watershed management, Caledon East, Ontario. Geological Survey of Canada, Open File 5275.
50. Sharpe, D.R., Pugin, A., Pullan, S.E., and Shaw, J. 2004. Regional unconformities and the sedimentary architecture of the Oak Ridge Moraine area, southern Ontario. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 41(2): 183-198. doi:10.1139/e04-001.
51. Shaw, J., and Gilbert, R. 1990. Evidence for large-scale subglacial meltwater flood events in southern Ontario and northern New York State. Geology, 18(12): 1169-1172. doi:10.1130/0091-7613(1990)018<1169:EFLSSM>2.3.CO;2.
52. Sjogren, D., Fisher, T.G., Taylor, L.D., Jol, H.M., and Munro-Stasiuk, M.J. 2002. Incipient tunnel channels. Quaternary International, 90(1): 41-56. doi:10.1016/S1040-6182(01)00091-X.
53. Spencer, J.W. 1881. Discovery of the preglacial outlet of the basin of Lake Erie into that of Lake Ontario; with notes on the origin of our lower Great Lakes. Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, 19: 300-337.
54. Spencer, J.W. 1890. Origin of the basins of the Great Lakes of America. Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London, 46(1-4): 523-533. doi:10.1144/GSL.JGS.1890.046.01-04.33.
55. Spencer, J.W. 1907. The falls of Niagara: their evolution and varying relations to the Great Lakes; Characteristics of the power, and the effects of its diversion. Department of Mines, Geological Survey Branch, Ottawa, Ont.
56. Straw, A. 1968. Late Pleistocene glacial erosion along the Niagara Escarpment of southern Ontario. Geological Society of America Bulletin, 79(7): 889-910. doi:10.1130/0016-7606(1968)79[889:LPGEAT]2.0.CO;2.
57. Tinkler, K.J., and Stenson, R.E. 1992. Sculpted bedrock forms along the Niagara Escarpment, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario. Géographie physique et Quaternaire, 46: 195-207.
58. White, O.L., and Karrow, P.F. 1971. New evidence for Spencer's Laurentian River. In Proceedings of the 14th Conference on Great Lakes Research. International Association of Great Lakes Research. pp. 394-400.
59. Wright, H.E., Jr. 1973. Tunnel valleys, glacial surges, and subglacial hydrology of the Superior lobe, Minnesota. Geological Society of America, Memoir 136. pp. 251-276.
60. Zwiers, W.G., Rainsford, D.R.B., and Bajc, A.F. 2008. Investigation of the Dundas buried bedrock valley. In Summary of field work and other activities 2008. Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 6226. pp. 33-1-33-7.
61. Zwiers, W.G., Bajc, A.F., Priebe, E.H., and Marich, A.S. 2009. Investigation of the Dundas buried bedrock valley, southern Ontario. In Summary of field work and other activities 2009. Ontario Geological Survey, Open File Report 6240. pp. 23-1-23-7.