See also:

Porcupine River Ice-free Period
 
Spring break-up of Yukon River at Dawson
 
Temperatures at Old Crow
 
Ice-Free Period of Old Crow River
 
Peel River Ice Bridge
 
Waterfowl, Old Crow Flats

Arctic Borderlands Ecological Knowledge Co-op

What is happening?

• This graph shows that over the last 50 years there is no significant trend in the date when the Porcupine River breaks-up. The date of spring break-up appears to occur in a random pattern.
• The average date of break-up is May 16 although the earliest date was on May 2, 1995 and the latest date was May 30, 1964.

Why is it happening?

• The timing of spring break-up is related to weather conditions in the river basin and should reflect long term changes in climate.

Why is it important?

• Timing of spring break-up can affect travel conditions for people and migrating animals such as caribou.

Technical Notes

• The data presented here were obtained from an unpublished 1998 report by Martin Jasek, DIAND, Whitehorse, YT. The sources used in his report include Environment Canada (Water Survey of Canada and Atmospheric Environment Services), FENCO (1974), DIAND, the Whitehorse Star and local sources.
• More recent dates were obtained from the Hydrology Section, Water Resources Division of DIAND and Yukon Government's Water Resources Branch.