while well oflfshore, nevertheless flows over the shoaler coastal areas 

 and must naturally carry many bergs aground. Onshore winds for a 

 sufficient period of time can ground the entire group. The groundings 

 in most cases, especially when considering the medium and larger 

 bergs, are believed to be more or less temporary in nature causing 

 delays in the trip. In other words, it is a matter of time until favor- 

 able winds will set them free. It is believed that the delays or lack of 

 delays on the part of berg groups as they journey toward the shipping 

 lanes are more significant than attrition due to permanent removal 

 from the current system. The longer a berg group is delayed along 

 the route the less chance it has to survive, or more accuratel}'^, the 

 attrition of the group due to deterioration will be much heavier before 

 arrival to the Grand Banks. More than 2 years of northern berg 

 surveys have strongly indicated that deterioration of bergs is prac- 

 tically nil from Cape Chidley to the Grand Banks in the winter. 

 Bergs reaching the Grand Banks in March and early April arrive 

 intact. Those arriving later will normally begin to deteriorate prior 

 to arrival. As the berg environment usually warms after March and 

 becomes progressively warmer on the Grand Banks and vicinity, it 

 becomes progressively more difficult for bergs to survive to the Grand 

 Banks. Thus any delays to bergs which cause their arrival at the 

 Grand Banks after, say mid- April, have the effect of reducing the 

 season's Grand Banks berg potential. Admittedly the bottom 

 topography of the Baffin Island and Labrador coastal regions is im- 

 perfectly known. Also the drifts of bergs can only be estimated on 

 the basis of size, shape, and draft. At any rate, average onshore winds 

 for a sufficient period of time will cause most of the berg group to 

 ground. Subsequent offshore winds will free most of them to con- 

 tinue their journey toward the Grand Banks, while onshore winds or 

 even alongshore winds will tend to contain them aground. Consider- 

 ing the bottom topography and current system direction along the 

 Labrador and Newfoundland coasts, conditions are favorable for 

 grounding of bergs especially with onshore winds. On the other 

 hand, those same conditions are less favorable for bergs to float free 

 again. The effect to tidal conditions can only be assumed. The over- 

 all tidal effect is believed negligible except possibly in areas such as 

 Cumberland Sound, Hudson Strait, and Belle Isle Strait. The pos- 

 sibility of stranded bergs floating free due to deterioration effecting 

 a lesser draft is believed negligible during the winter months. In 

 conclusion, it is suggested that the bottom topography can have a 

 tremendous influence on the berg crop by stalling or delaying its 

 movement toward the Grand Banks. An evaluation of the effect of 

 atmospheric pressure distribution on berg drift cannot be very 

 worthwhile unless bottom topography is considered. 



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