Quantifying groundwater discharge to surface reservoirs

在过去的50年里，全球地下水开采率至少增加了两倍。气候变化、森林砍伐或城市化增加了地下水资源的额外压力。这些压力具有非常重要的现实意义，因为美国各州现在都有地下水位下降的记录，可能会危及河流基流和依赖地下水的生态系统。建立或破坏GW-SW连接的条件、触发因素和阈值仍然知之甚少。在未来几年，我的长期目标将是开发创新的方法，以量化向地表水库的含水层排放，并量化排放对自然和人为变化的脆弱性。我的短期目标是：1)开发一种以科学为基础的地表水库地下水排放类型；2)量化通常确定地下水排放的中观尺度；3)定义可用于识别排放变化的反映当前状况的指标。每一项目标都将通过进行两项HQP研究来实现。Phd1将专注于利用高精度地形激光雷达数据限制地下水排泄区的位置。MSc1将旨在更好地了解流量的短期变化如何受到地质和水文条件的影响。PHD2将旨在了解在加拿大南部典型的水文地质背景下控制地下水排放的中尺度驱动力和条件。MSc2将侧重于对中尺度补给负责的过程，包括冻结和融化。PHD3将解决了解整个圣劳伦斯低地地下水排放的复杂问题，并制定地下水排放指标。MSC3将使用目标流域模型的子集来确定气候变化、土地利用变化和缓解措施对地下水排放的影响。最先进的实地工作和适用于各种条件的建模方法的结合是独特和原创的。这项研究将填补在驱动地下水排放的过程和规模方面的知识空白，提供估计当前状况和确定未来压力的新方法。预计它将制作出被引用次数较多的基准出版物。这将通过培训HQP(3名博士、3名硕士、2名理科学士)来实现，他们将参加一个由水文地质领域顶尖研究人员组成的独特的多学科团队。他们将准备好面对水文地质学和环境研究中常见的现场和建模工作的复杂性。这项研究计划有可能改变地下水纳入水管理政策的方式，并有助于恢复依赖地下水的生态系统和地下水资源。

Over the past 50 years, the global groundwater extraction rate has at least tripled. Climate change, deforestation or urbanization add additionnal pressures on groundwater resources. These stresses are of very current importance, as groundwater level declines have now been recorded in every state of the USA, possibly jeopardizing river baseflows and groundwater dependent ecosystems. The conditions, triggers and thresholds under which gw-sw connectivity is established or compromised are still poorly understood. In the coming years, my long-term objective will be to develop innovative approaches to quantifying aquifer discharge to surface reservoirs and to quantifying the vulnerabilty of discharge to natural and human-induced changes. My short-term objectives are: 1) to develop a science-based typology of groundwater discharge to surface reservoirs; 2) to quantify the meso-scale at which groundwater discharge is usually determined; and 3) to define indicators reflecting current conditions that can be used to identify discharge changes. Each objective will be met by undertaking two HQP studies. PhD1 will focus on constraining the location of groundwater discharge areas using high-precision topographic LiDAR data. MSc1 will aim at better understanding how short-term changes in discharge are influenced by geological and hydrological conditions. PhD2 will aim at understanding the meso-scale driving forces and conditions governing groundwater discharge in hydrogeological contexts typical of southern Canada. MSc2 will focus on the processes responsable for meso-scale recharge, including freezing and thawing. PhD3 will disentangle the complex problem of understanding groundwater discharge for the entire St. Lawrence Lowlands and develop indicators of groundwater discharge. MSc3 will use a subset of the models of targeted watersheds to determine the impacts of climate change, land use change and mitigation measures on groundwater discharge. The combination of state-of-the-art field work and modelling approaches applied for a variety of conditions is unique and original. This research will fill knowledge gaps on the processes and scales driving groundwater discharge, provide new ways of estimating current conditions and identify future pressures. It is expected to produce benchmark, highly cited publications. This will be made possible by the training of HQP (3 PhD, 3 MSc, 2 BSc) who will participate in a unique multi-disciplinary team of top researchers in the field of hydrogeology. They will be prepared to face the complexity of field and modelling work common to hydrogeology and environmental studies. This research program has the potential to change the way groundwater is included in water management policies and to contribute to the resilience of groundwater dependent ecosystems and groundwater resources.