Welcome to Groundwater Connections

This community-based watershed program for sustainable groundwater management was designed as an economic approach for monitoring groundwater levels in Rocky View County. Surface water in southern Alberta is fully allocated due to both environmental and growth pressures, thereby increasing reliance on groundwater. However, groundwater cannot be seen and its quantity is largely unknown. This can cause problems when determining if current uses are sustainable and if future uses will remain sustainable. Since groundwater is an important resource, this project was developed to increase our understanding necessary to plan and manage groundwater resources.
Prior to the start of this project, an interest in groundwater was gaining priority in Alberta. The increasing demand on groundwater combined with drought conditions and a lack of knowledge, created a desire to find sustainable management and development techniques to prevent overuse of groundwater resources (Greeif, 2006). It was this risk to families, communities, and the economy that sparked an interest in finding new solutions. One of the solutions proposed was a community-based monitoring program which could be used to address the lack of information surrounding groundwater.
The goal of this project is to increase our knowledge base of the cumulative impact of multiple wells in the local aquifer on groundwater levels and groundwater-surface water interaction through an integrated research - community outreach - education approach.
The purpose of an integrated approach is to dismantle barriers between scientific research, community engagement, and science education. This approach allows researchers to provide access to current research and expertise in data analysis, engage the community in data collection and groundwater monitoring, and enable science educators to focus on local groundwater processes and issues. An integrated approach provides opportunity for scientific knowledge to reach a wider audience, make local research more accessible to the community, and help people feel they are contributing to the goals of the project.
The project was made possible through the partnership between the University of Calgary and Rocky View County. Funding support was provided by RBC Blue Water Project (Project 193). One of the commitments of the Blue Water Project is to encourage collaboration among and between sectors to help protect the world’s freshwater.
Prior to the start of this project, an interest in groundwater was gaining priority in Alberta. The increasing demand on groundwater combined with drought conditions and a lack of knowledge, created a desire to find sustainable management and development techniques to prevent overuse of groundwater resources (Greeif, 2006). It was this risk to families, communities, and the economy that sparked an interest in finding new solutions. One of the solutions proposed was a community-based monitoring program which could be used to address the lack of information surrounding groundwater.
The goal of this project is to increase our knowledge base of the cumulative impact of multiple wells in the local aquifer on groundwater levels and groundwater-surface water interaction through an integrated research - community outreach - education approach.
The purpose of an integrated approach is to dismantle barriers between scientific research, community engagement, and science education. This approach allows researchers to provide access to current research and expertise in data analysis, engage the community in data collection and groundwater monitoring, and enable science educators to focus on local groundwater processes and issues. An integrated approach provides opportunity for scientific knowledge to reach a wider audience, make local research more accessible to the community, and help people feel they are contributing to the goals of the project.
The project was made possible through the partnership between the University of Calgary and Rocky View County. Funding support was provided by RBC Blue Water Project (Project 193). One of the commitments of the Blue Water Project is to encourage collaboration among and between sectors to help protect the world’s freshwater.
Research ConnectionsThe science behind the project can be found in the Research Connections section. There is information about the study area – the climate, geology, and hydrological processes. This section highlights both current understandings discovered through the local research and topics still being examined by researchers. The numerical model being developed using the data collected for this project is explained and will be updated as advancements are made.
This section also contains a list of academic papers related to and published about the current project. In addition, there are papers adapted from the scientific literature explaining the local hydrologic processes and research completed to date. Adapting the primary literature allows research findings to be accessible to all communities and people interested in groundwater research, monitoring, and education. Read More... |
Community ConnectionsIn Rocky View County, the majority of residents rely on groundwater for household and agricultural purposes; therefore there is a need to understand the location, quality, and quantity of groundwater in the County. Community involvement is what makes the Groundwater Connections project unique. This section provides information, including outreach publications, on how the project started in the West Nose Creek watershed and developed into the current project in Rocky View County. In addition, this section links readers to the data collected by participants, which is made available through our online database - Rocky View Well Watch.
There is also an opportunity to stay up to date with the project though our blog and Ask a Hydrologist section. Readers can also learn about the current participants reasons for contributing to the monitoring project and why the County feels it is important to work with community members on water resource issues. A procedure manual and templates are also available to download for municipalities interested in implementing their own community-based monitoring network. Read More... |
Education ConnectionsThis project also provides access to current groundwater research and related teaching resources for the Alberta Program of Studies for Science 8: Freshwater & Saltwater Systems. Access and connections to the research and resources are provided through an educational approach called adapted primary literature (APL).
This approach emphasizes 'fundamental literacy' (reading and writing) as key component of scientific inquiry (Cervetti et al. 2006, Norris et al. 2009), by providing access to research articles that has been re-written into a form suitable for students, while retaining characteristics of primary research articles (Falk and Yarden 2011, Yarden 2009). In this project, the APL article for students has been co-developed by the research team and teachers as a literature review of groundwater research. The related teaching resources highlight the use of APL articles (e.g., how to develop inquiry skills through reading and writing), along with a selection of field and lab experiences to enhance students' understanding of groundwater research and monitoring. Read More... |
Project TeamPrincipal Investigator: Dr. Masaki Hayashi
Research Team Dr. Larry Bentley Dr. Getachew Adem Mohammed Dr. Ed Johnson Krystal Chin Community Outreach Kathleen Little Education Michael Mappin Chris Farrow Collaborating Teachers (Sigma Xi Project): Ms. Roxane Brocklebank, Ms. Jessica Bates, Ms. Brittany Boechler and Mr. Ben MacIntosh ADDITIONAL PARTNERS This project would not be possible without these additional partners sharing their expertise: Rocky View County (Tim Dietzler and Vince Diot) University of Calgary – Department of Geomatics Engineering Dr. Steve Liang – Assistant Professor Research Associates: Christopher Kyle, James Badger and David Chang Alberta Geological Survey (Laurence Andriashek and Tony Lemay) |