Joshua Manning

The community of Grand Pré, Nova Scotia in accordance with Parks Canada is in the process of completing a proposal to make Grand Pré dyke lands a world UNESCO heritage site. Acadian settlers 330 years ago settled in Grand Pré to transform an area of salt marsh and mud flat into farmland. Prior to the arrival of the Acadians the salt marsh and mud flats were constantly transforming due to the tidal range and Bay of Fundy currents. To understand the complex environment core samples were collected and a comprehensive study was completed on the Foraminifera zonations to reconstruct the past environment. Trochammina inflata and Tiphotrocha comprimata dominate the high to middle marsh and Elphidium williamsoni and Haynesina dominate the mud flat environments. Correlation of these environments has revealed past transgressive and regressive cycles and information on the effects of anthropogenic changes to the landscape. Using carbon-14 age dating it was determined that the sediments penetrated has a 2700 years old contact between high marsh and mudflat. Using this information scenario models were created and reconstruction of the coastland at Grand Pré was possible.

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Pages: 91
Supervisor: David Scott