Grant: Alliance Grants

This research is aimed at investigating the cumulative impacts of groundwater pumping on surface water and groundwater interaction in a northern British Columbia watershed through a research partnership between the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) and the BC Ministry of Forests (MOF). The research will use an integrated approach, which consists of groundwater and surface water level monitoring, water balance assessment, and numerical modeling. A 3-D groundwater flow model and a neural-fuzzy tool for water allocation will be developed. The results from this research will provide valuable scientific data to better support groundwater licensing decisions in British Columbia under the Water Sustainability Act. The academic research team will engage in regular interaction and discussion with the partner organization to identify challenges and address research problems. One postdoctoral research fellow (PDF) and one Master's (MSc) student at UNBC will be trained. Equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) will be considered in the search process and integrated into the research and the training plan for the highly qualified personnel (HQP).