Measuring permafrost thaw subsidence in agricultural fields in Alaska

Measuring permafrost thaw subsidence in agricultural fields in Alaska Melissa Ward Jones, a Research Assistant Professor at the Water and Environmental Research Center (WERC) of the University of Alaska Fairbanks, discusses research focused on understanding the interactions of permafrost thaw and agriculture. While there are many different responses of permafrost thaw (Ward Jones, 2024), one of the most impressive consequences is thaw subsidence (lowering or collapse of the land surface) when permafrost is ice-rich. Farmers-collaborators participating in the Permafrost Grown Project, a $3 million, five-year (2022- 2027) transdisciplinary project based at the University of Alaska Fairbanks and funded by the US National Science Foundation, have described various ways thaw subsidence impacts their agricultural fields and practices. This includes changing surface topography, changing surface water flow patterns, killing crops, and abandoning whole or parts of fields.