Jökull - 01.12.1993, Page 25

Figure 3. The site at Langanes, northeastern Iceland (C on Figure 1). a) Driftwood on the beach. b) Method of
sampling. — Frá Langanesi a) Reki áfjöru, b) Sýni tekin afrekavið til árhringjarannsókna.
RESULTS
general notice
The occurrence of recent driftwood on the Arc-
tic shores and its islands is due two different pro-
cesses; trees either began drifting because of natural
processes, or because of hurnan activity.
The first group includes trees with their root sy stem
preserved when they were washed ashore on an arc-
tic beach, meaning that they were eroded from a river
side. The second group includes trees that have obvi-
ously been cut with a saw before they began drifting,
mdicating that they came loose during timber floating
to the forest industry. The driftwood is transported by
nvers into the Arctic Ocean where the logs are caught
in oceanic currents.
The driftwood deposited in Iceland today is - as
will be seen below - dominated by wood that has come
loose during timber floating on the Russian/Siberian
nvers. All the driftwood that has been collected in
Iceland originates from the boreal forest regions and
has drifted with currents from the north.
Figure 4. The Northern range of Pinus silvestris, Larix
sp. and Picea sp. (modified from Hustich 1966).
— Utbreiðsla furu, lerkis og grenis.
JÖKULL,No. 43, 1993 23