Abstracts

Kh estimates within the context of the stratigraphic architecture will elucidate the geologic
controls on groundwater resource potential, and assist the City in finding new groundwater
resources in a cost effective manner.
153 - Arkell Spring Grounds Adaptive Management Program and
Operational Testing Program in Support of Increased Water Taking
R. Freymond & M. Fraser
Stantec Consulting Ltd., Kitchener, Ontario, Canada
D. Belanger
City of Guelph, Guelph Water Services, Guelph, Ontario, Canada
The Arkell Spring Grounds, located east of the City of Guelph in the Township of
Puslinch, is the largest producing well field for the City. The spring grounds consist of
shallow spring collectors, one overburden and five bedrock production wells. Subject to
the conditions of the Arkell Class Environmental Assessment and the existing Permit
To Take Water, the water taking from the bedrock aquifer was proposed to increase from
19,584 m 3 /day to a maximum of 28,800 m 3 /day. The conditions of approval for increasing
the water taking required the City to complete a detailed hydrogeologic study of the Arkell
Spring Grounds and to develop an Adaptive Management Plan (AMP), both of which
were approved by the Ministry of the Environment in 2009.
The AMP is an iterative decision making process that includes assessing the problem, designing
a management plan, implementing the plan and monitoring, followed by evaluating
and adjusting the plan based on the results. The Arkell AMP focuses on the ecosystem health
of Blue Springs Creek, a coldwater stream situated about 2 km to the northeast of the Arkell
Spring Grounds. The AMP was intended to confirm the conclusion of the initial studies:
Blue Springs Creek will not be impacted by the proposed increase in water taking from the
bedrock aquifer system. The AMP included detailed ecosystem monitoring of Blue Springs
Creek as well as groundwater monitoring conducted over 42 months starting in January
2011. The 42 month monitoring period included 6 months of baseline data collection followed
by 3 years of an Operational Testing Program (OTP) where the bedrock production
wells are pumped at rates as high as 28,800 m 3 /day for extended periods of time.
The use of the AMP allowed continuous re-evaluation of the monitoring program
throughout the regulatory process in an effort to optimize the program by allocating resources
to areas that were most informative. The results of the first two years of the OTP
indicated no impact to the Blue Springs Creek Ecosystem as a result of pumping at the
conditional testing rate of 26,957 m 3 /day. Through the AMP process, the testing program
was re-evaluated resulting in the removal of a pumping rate limiting condition in
the PTTW so that the full permitted pumping rate (28,800 m 3 /day) could be tested, thus
accelerating project implementation.
The talk will focus on the results of the Arkell Spring Grounds AMP and OTP while
highlighting the use of the AMP to accelerate project implementation while avoiding unneeded
study.
110 IAH-CNC 2015 WATERLOO CONFERENCE