739

Site number:

739

Authors:

IBC, GGC, DSS

Date recorded:

1994/01/06

Reason Sampled:

For determination of sources and levels of soil contaminants around Scott Base

Description:

SS4 T1; the site is 14.5 m south of the southwest corner of the Scott Base Mess/Bar building and 2 m from sewage disposal pipes; on a hardfill surface which forms part of the access way area around Scott Base buildings

Altitude:

16 m

Aspect:

SE

Slope:

7 °

Climate

Soil climate zone:

Coastal mountain

Estimated mean annual temperature:

-18 °C

Frozen ground depth:

50 cm

Frozen type:

Ice-cemented

Frozen comment:

50

Geology

Geological setting:

The materials comprise volcanics of the McMurdo Volcanics Formation mainly as scoriaceous lava flows; the surface materials are a thin cover of mainly fractured bedrock with addition of some glacially derived granular and pebble clasts from outside the immediate area; the volcanic bedrock has been considerably fractured by patterned ground freeze thaw; the surface age is probably very late Pleistocene (Ross Sea Glaciation) having been modified by McMurdo Sound filling glacial ice

Patterned ground:

Nil

Surface weathering or surface features:

The ground surface is smooth as a result of land filling amd land levelling; some adjacent scattered surface salt efflorescences

Soil

Soil parent material:

Fill materials, somewhat compacted derived from soil and fragmented bedrock and built up for land levelling;

Previous disturbance:

The site was very close to the original Scott Base buildings; the surface was subsequently modified by additilon of fill and land levelling for vehicle access to existing base buildings; a range of foreign materials are present but occur mainly at the surface

Soil weathering stage:

6 1 (Campbell & Claridge 1975)

Soil moisture status:

Xerous to subxerous; the soil is dry at the surface but moist below

Biological activity:

None observed