• Supply
• Protection
• Remediation
• Modelling
• Monitoring

Groundwater Supply

TerrAtlantic Engineering Limited is one of Atlantic Canada's leading hydrogeological consulting firms. It has been responsible for the development of high capacity wells for municipalities and industry across the region.

Typical Projects:

• Development of a new high-yield wellfield for the City of Fredericton, New Brunswick.
• Enhancement of the Carpenter Pond wellfield for the Town of Rothesay, New Brunswick.
• Water supply assessment, Village of Chipman, New Brunswick.
• Development of a new high-capacity wellfield for industrial puposes, Cap-Pele, New Brunswick.

Groundwater supply studies generally begin with a thorough assessment of available information. Site reconnaissance is then undertaken, followed by the implementation of an exploration program. If the recharge potential is considered favourable and the established safe well yields adequate, exploration may lead to the full-scale development of the resource. The information review process involves the compilation and assessment of geologic, topographic and hydrogeologic maps, air photos, well records and geochemical data. The objective is to develop a conceptual model of the hydrogeologic regime by considering the recharge availability, the hydraulics of the aquifer and the chemical environment.

At the site reconnaissance stage, those features of the terrain relevant to the area's viability as a source of groundwater are evaluated. In the case of bedrock aquifers, the surface expression of significant lineations visible on air photos would be sought. Such features often reflect broken zones where the rock transmissivity and well yields may be high.

An exploration program is then designed to fully assess the capability of the aquifer to sustain both short and long-term withdrawals. Such exploration may involve geophysical study, test drilling, pump testing and chemical analysis. Wellfield development will likely involve the construction of one or more production wells, more pump testing, and the construction of the infrastructure to permit the new supply to come online.

At the evaluation and reporting stage, all the data are compiled and analyzed. Computer modelling is often undertaken in evaluating the pump test data and in assessing the likely performance of the aquifer. Both analytical and numerical approaches may be followed. Reports are prepared describing the findings of each stage of the work, and conclusions and recommendations are presented.