Water Stewardship Information Sources

Citation Allen, D., P.H. Whitfield and A. Werner, 2010. Groundwater Level Responses in Temperate Mountainous Terrain: Regime Classification, and Linkages to Climate and Streamflow. Hydrologic Processes, 24(23) 3392-3412.
Organization SFU
URL http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hyp.7757/abstract
Abstract/Description or Keywords groundwater levels;streamflow;groundwater–surface water interaction;climate;mountainous regions;aquifer characteristics
Abstract
Groundwater responses in temperate mountainous terrain are assessed using groundwater, hydrometric and climatic data from southern British Columbia, Canada. Well and stream hydrographs are analysed using a series of diagnostic tools including time series plots, hysteresis plots, and cross-correlation plots. Characterizing the seasonal timing of the response requires consideration of the hydroclimatology of the region: rainfall-dominated (pluvial), snowmelt-dominated (nival) or hybrid (mixture of rain and snow). The magnitude and timing of the recharge and discharge response of the groundwater system was shown to depend on the storage and permeability characteristics of the aquifer and whether the system is stream-driven or recharge-driven. These two dominant stream-aquifer system types were defined based on classifying different aquifer types found in the southwest portion of the province. The classification scheme and diagnostic tools have the potential to provide a framework for evaluating the responses of wells in other mountainous regions. Using this framework, the potential consequences of future climate change may then be better understood based on the interactions between the hydrogeological and hydroclimatic settings of these aquifers
Information Type article
Regional Watershed Province
Sub-watershed if known
Aquifer #
Comments
Project status complete
Contact Name Diana Allen
Contact Email [email protected]