In: Coastal Zone '78, the Proceedings of the Symposium on Technical, Environmental, Socioeconomic and Regulatory Aspects of Coastal Zone Management ASCE/San Francisco, Calif./March 14-16, 1978, 663-679

W. A. GLOOSCHENKO^l and I.P. MARTINI²

1Geology Section, Process Research Division, Canada Centre for Inland Waters, Burlington, Otario, Canada
²Department of Land Resource Science, University of Guelph, Ontario

The subarctic Hudson Bay Lowlands is a flat, poorly drained region extending from 50⁰ to 59°N on the western side of James and Hudson Bays. The coastline is emerging due to isostatic uplift at rates up to 1.5 metres per century. It is estimated that of the approximately 1,130 km of shoreline in Ontario, some 85-90% are characterized by salt marsh development, the rest being river mouth and high-energy beach features. The present process-oriented study consisting of sedimentology, geo-chemistry, pedology, vegetation and wildlife ecology is being carried out on the Ontario shore of the Lowlands in order to understand how potential future developments might affect these important coastal eco-systems.