Applied Hydrogeology in Alberta

The course will intro­duce the prac­tice of hydro­ge­ol­o­gy as gen­er­al­ly applied in Alber­ta. Three areas of hydro­ge­ol­o­gy will be explored, with empha­sis on con­di­tions in Alber­ta. These areas include:(1) Hydro­ge­o­log­i­cal Site Assess­ment, (2) Ground­wa­ter Resource Eval­u­a­tion and Man­age­ment, and (3) Ground­wa­ter Mon­i­tor­ing. Top­ics will include prin­ci­ples and prac­tices of con­t­a­m­i­nat­ed site assess­ment, reg­u­la­to­ry con­sid­er­a­tions, con­cep­tu­al mod­els, envi­ron­men­tal risk man­age­ment, and ground­wa­ter reme­di­a­tion. Meth­ods of char­ac­ter­iz­ing region­al base­line hydro­ge­ol­o­gy, ground­wa­ter resource quan­ti­ty and qual­i­ty, and ground­wa­ter vul­ner­a­bil­i­ty will be cov­ered, along with dis­cus­sion of issues such as ground­wa­ter mod­el­ling, water­shed man­age­ment, ground­wa­ter-sur­face water inter­ac­tion, and impli­ca­tions of cli­mate change. Also con­sid­ered will be the key ele­ments of design­ing an effec­tive ground­wa­ter mon­i­tor­ing pro­gram both on a local and a region­al scale.

Course at a glance
What you will learn

By the end of this course, you should be able to:

  • Describe the key elements of hydrogeological characterization in terms of groundwater flow and groundwater quality, on a local or regional scale.
  • Conceptualize the management of potential risks posed by groundwater contamination in the context of Alberta regulations.
  • Understand the concept and manifestations of regional groundwater flow.
  • Explain how groundwater resource evaluation is conducted in Alberta.
  • Understand Alberta’s groundwater regulatory framework.
  • Demonstrate an understanding of current and emerging groundwater and water management issues in Alberta.
This course has no prerequisites

Students from all educational backgrounds welcome. You can register for this course without applying and enrolling in a program.

Take note:

  • Bring a scientific calculator, ruler, pencil, eraser, and paper for each day of class.
  • While there are no prerequisites for this course, prior knowledge of the following is recommended for student success: knowledge of Earth materials and processes; basic mathematics skills for manipulating equations; basic understanding of physics (e.g. force, pressure, and energy); basic chemistry; use of spreadsheets (e.g. Excel).
  • Course assessment includes work and assignments outside of class times; in-class exams may also be included.
  • Post-course work is required.
Currently counts towards:

Applicants intending to enrol in a program are encouraged to apply as soon as possible to lock in their course requirements since they are prone to change.

*If you are already enroled in this program, please refer to your specific program requirements as outlined at the time of your admission: Bear Tracks > Academic Advisement.

When will
this course be offered?

New course schedules are released each June and November.

Course not yet scheduled

This course is not currently scheduled, but may be offered in an upcoming term.

New course schedules are announced each June and November.


Sign up for updates

Interested in future offerings of this course? We can let you know when this course becomes available.