Subventions et des contributions :

Subvention ou bourse octroyée s'appliquant à plus d'un exercice financier. (2017-2018 à 2022-2023)

Groundwater resource protection has traditionally focused on contaminant sources at the ground surface and in the shallow subsurface. Recent reviews of the installation, stimulation, and operation of deep wells indicated that groundwater resources can also be at risk of contamination from deeper sources. This research program will examine the strength of both natural and anthropogenic connections between deep hydrogeological systems and shallow groundwater supplies. This will be achieved by taking a multipronged approach that uses existing data from the oil and gas industry, potash mines, and provincial groundwater observation networks, field sampling, and numerical modeling.

Existing data will be used to support the characterization of hydrogeological systems in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin. While this has been done for some regions of the basin, the focus to date has been on mapping regional flow patterns, with little regard for many of the physical parameters required to support analysis of contaminant transport at scales relevant to industrial development. This research program will compile and analyze these data to support the creation of numerical models of potential connections between deep and shallow groundwater systems.

Chemical data will be compiled from a range of existing sources and will be supplemented by analyses of samples collected during this research program, as well as complimentary research conducted with potash mining companies in Saskatchewan. This chemical data will be used to build a database suitable for identifying water from different formations. Because few cases of contaminant transport between deep and shallow groundwater systems have been rigorously studied in Canada, these chemical data will be used as initial conditions in numerical models to explore the distribution of different groundwater tracers in a range of situations where deep fluids contaminate shallow groundwater supplies. This will help to focus the search for legacy issues related to deep well installation and operation and guide future environmental assessments and monitoring programs.