Whereas over one million British Columbians rely on groundwater for daily use and that groundwater presents significant challenges in terms of monitoring, defining classifyingcharacterizing,and demonstrating water viability, including water-use budgetsallocations; And whereas the impacts of climate change, population growth and industrial activity are intensifying, and all three factors can negatively impact groundwater sustainability and sources: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM request that the provincial government prioritize the following: 1. Renew the work to identify aquifers at risk in terms of productivity and vulnerability to contamination, climate change, population growth and other criteria; 2. Continue to build in the provinces groundwater monitoring capacity, including installation of additional observation wells for high risk aquifers; 3. Develop a regular reporting process on the health and viability of high-risk aquifers; and 4. Develop a funding program for local governments to support local monitoring of groundwater resources.
Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship Protecting our watersheds and aquifers is a shared responsibility. To effectively manage groundwater use and the impacts of land use activities on groundwater availability, quality, and overall health, it is essential to understand the existence and characteristics of BCs aquifers. Provincial mapping of an aquifer within the Groundwater Wells and Aquifers search tool GWELLS is often the first step in developing this understanding. Evaluating productivity and vulnerability of aquifers, particularly in complex systems, often requires more detailed studies, modelling and field-based measurements of groundwater levels. Since 2016, the Provinces dedicated Groundwater Science Program has vastly improved our groundwater knowledge. Studies conducted under this program are available through the BC Water Science Series webpage. Projects supported by the Groundwater Science team include characterization of specific aquifers, surface and groundwater interaction studies, drought and groundwater studies, tools and summary factsheets. This information can be used by local governments and others to undertake aquifer water budgets to assess availability, safe yield estimates and potential vulnerabilities to different development planning scenarios. Where possible, the Province and local water stewardship groups collaborate with local governments to provide professional advice to inform policies, bylaws or other mechanisms to manage land use activities in ways that will ensure protection of water values. If concerns are specific to the protection of the aquifer as a drinking water source, the Province has developed tools and resources to help water suppliers fulfill their responsibilities under the Drinking Water Protection Act and Drinking Water Protection Regulation. Information on these tools and drinking water responsibilities can be found on the Drinking Water Quality page of the Provinces website. Established in 1961, the Provincial Groundwater Observation Well Network PGOWN is currently comprised of more than 235 monitoring stations actively measuring groundwater levels. Maintenance of the PGOWN is a key focus of the program to ensure ongoing collection of high-quality data. While expansion of monitoring into new aquifers is possible, due to limited program resources, the Province may need to prioritize monitoring locations, meaning that lower priority stations would need to be closed in order to expand the network into different aquifers. Provincial Groundwater Monitoring Specialists and regional Groundwater Technicians can provide guidance to local governments and others who undertake their own groundwater monitoring to inform local land and water use planning and decisions.