Ice blasting is the use of

explosives An explosive (or explosive material) is a reactive substance that contains a great amount of potential energy that can produce an explosion if released suddenly, usually accompanied by the production of light, heat, sound, and pressure. An expl ...

to break up ice in rivers, aiding navigation and preventing flooding. This is done during the spring when snow is melting and river ice is breaking up. There is always a chance that the ice flows could collide creating an

ice jam Ice jams occur when a topographic feature of the river causes floating river ice to accumulate and impede further progress downstream with the river current. Ice jams can significantly reduce the flow of a river and cause upstream flooding—som ...

and blocking the river. The river, filled with melt water, will quickly

flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

and often cause damage to nearby settlements. Thus in most northern areas governments quickly act to break up the ice jams before they can do much damage. This is most easily done with explosives. These explosives may be planted from the shore, or in some cases by helicopter. Explosives can also be remotely delivered by artillery or dropped by bombers. In the large rivers of the

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part ...

the Russian airforce is sometimes called in to bomb ice jams. Some districts, where flooding is especially common, do preemptive ice blasting. The city of

Ottawa, Ontario Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, Canada, for instance, blasts the

Rideau River The Rideau River (french: Rivière Rideau) is a river in Eastern Ontario, Canada. The river flows north from Upper Rideau Lake and empties into the Ottawa River at the Rideau Falls in Ottawa, Ontario. Its length is . As explained in a wri ...

each spring to break up the ice. In 1994, for instance, 10,000 sticks of dynamite were used to break up ice along 9 kilometres of the river. Grant Hopkins "Ice-blasting on Rideau will have to be limited to avoid heavy fish toll, study says." ''The Ottawa Citizen.'' Jun 12, 1994. pg. D.6 Ice blasting has a number of disadvantages. It is expensive and dangerous requiring highly skilled explosives experts. When blasting is occurring the public must be warned to keep their distance. The blasting has negative environmental consequences. Fish and other river creatures are inevitably killed and the river bottom is scarred. Unexploded ordnance can also be a concern where remote delivery is used.

References

*Tom Spears. "Halt ice blasting on Rideau River, Ottawa urged." ''The Ottawa Citizen.'' Apr 5, 1995. pg. B.4 {{Ice Explosives