Hydrological Monitoring, Modelling, and Simulation
We Develop Science-led Practical Solutions for Predicting Water Resource Risks and Vulnerabilities in a Changing Climate
Although the challenges of water security are global in scale, it is increasingly clear that many solutions lie at regional and local levels where impacts are felt, and decisions are made. Canada is warming faster than the rest of the globe. This unprecedented warming has implications for space-time distribution and availability of water, particularly in lakes and rivers, glaciers, ice and snowpacks, and groundwater. Observational records indicate that a shift in stream hydrographs and in extreme temperature and precipitation regimes have occurred. Changes in snow and ice regimes―reducing snow cover extent, glacier retreat, thawing of permafrost, and earlier breakup of seasonal freshwater ice cover are occurring. Projected climate change is resulting in sea level rise with increased risk of flooding and erosion in coastal areas, reduced winter snow accumulation and decreased water supply, changes in flood and drought frequency, intensity and severity, and loss of aquatic habitat. These changes in water supply, demand, and quality profoundly impacts the viability of agricultural, economic, environmental, and social ecosystems.
We work with our clients to use the next generation hydrological models to estimate water quantity and quality under changing climate, land use and socio-economic conditions. The Canadian Prairie-Pothole Region has presented formidable challenges for hydrological models due to its many internal drainages, large depressional storage (e.g., wetlands), variable contributing area, high infiltration rates, wind redistribution of snow, solar radiation dominated snowmelt, frozen soils, and low evapo-transpiration rates. The Canadian landscape have also presented widespread problems to many models because of many of the processes and sublimation of intercepted snow, the impact of slope and aspect on the snowmelt energy balance and sub-canopy radiation effects. Realistic hydrological modelling in Canada is hampered by attempts to apply models that were developed for well-drained, temperate, or humid regions in our often poorly drained, cold, and sub-humid environment. Such model applications often require setting parameters outside of their physically meaningful range to compensate for deficiencies in model structure, conceptualisation, and parameterisation.
Our hydrologists, climate scientists and academic collaborators improve and apply purpose-built physically based multiscale hydrological modelling frameworks for site specific small watersheds (e.g., CRHM) and medium-to-large scale watersheds and river basins (e.g., RAVEN and MESH) hydrologic assessments for our clients. We also couple water quantity and water quality models to simulate pollutants in water systems.
Our areas of expertise include:
- Next-Gen Hydrological Model Development
- Hydrological and Meteorological Monitoring
- Climate Change Impacts on Hydrology and Water Resources
- Runoff and Snowpack Modelling
- Extreme Precipitation Event Analyses
- Water Quality Modelling
- Small-scale Hydrological Modelling
- Large-scale Hydrological Modelling
- Water Supply and Demand Analyses