Eastern Yukon Stream Sediment and Soil Trace Element Survey

Multi-element stream sediment reconnaissance in the Hess River region identified an area with anomalously high molybdenum values. A detailed study within this zone analyzed trace element levels in stream sediment, rock, soil, and vegetation, with a focus on molybdenum concentrations in forage plants consumed by wildlife.

Use Cases

• Correlate stream sediment molybdenum concentrations with underlying geology like dark shales and limestone to map geochemical anomalies.
• Analyze molybdenum uptake in vegetation based on soil pH and parent material (shale vs. limestone) to assess bioavailability.
• Investigate the relationship between forage plant molybdenum levels and potential copper deficiency risks for caribou and moose.
• Predict catchments with molybdenum-rich vegetation by combining stream sediment molybdenum data with stream pH measurements where available.

Strengths

• Study focuses on a specific, accessible region within a larger identified zone of high molybdenum values.
• Analysis covers multiple environmental mediums: stream sediment, rock, soil, and vegetation.
• Research provides a mechanistic explanation for molybdenum availability linked to soil pH and geology.

Limitations

• Stream pH data, identified as a key predictive variable, was not collected during the initial regional survey.
• The spatial extent of molybdenum-rich vegetation is considered limited due to the apparent rarity of dark limestone bedrock.
• Data format is HTML, which may require extraction and structuring for quantitative analysis.

Provenance

Source

Government of Yukon

Collection Method

Multi-element stream sediment reconnaissance followed by detailed field study of trace elements in sediment, rock, soil, and plants.

Time Range

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Freshness

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Geography

Hess River region, Eastern Yukon Territory, Canada