Thawing permafrost in interior Alaska will lead to dramatic changes in stream discharge, bank stability, and water chemistry. Stream discharge will change from surface- to groundwater-dominated flow, resulting in increased baseflows (including winter flows) and declining annual flows. Thawing permafrost along streams and rivers will decrease bank stability, which could lead to erosion and alteration of the stream channel. Shifts to deeper flow paths will result in altered stream chemistry, depending upon the soil types intersected and residence times. Observations in Alaska show that flow paths will interact with organic-rich soils and result in increased concentrations of dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen, although over longer [...]
