The Groundwater Observation Well Network (GOWN) is an Alberta Government owned network of groundwater monitoring wells located throughout the province with wells completed in various aquifers.
The majority of active wells are fitted with data loggers and sensors that continually record groundwater levels. In addition, several of these wells are sampled annually for water quality analysis.
Current GOWN operations
Data has been collected from 1,159 wells starting in the mid-1950’s of which 306 are currently actively monitored. Of those active wells:
- 232 wells are actively monitored with electronic data logger / pressure transducers downloaded annually
- 57 wells transmit hourly data via satellite transmission to Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES)
- 17 are manually measured
Current and historical groundwater level information for the active and inactive wells in the network can be accessed from this website.
Regional technologists maintain the wells, collect the data, sample the wells and archive the data into departmental databases.
This will open an interactive tool that will show a map with observation well points. Selecting a point will open a page with the associated groundwater levels and well information.
Chemistry wells
Groundwater samples have been collected from 437 wells for a variety of project purposes from the GOWN wells and have been analyzed for constituents such as:
- isotopes
- pesticides/herbicides
- routine inorganic metals
- some bacteria
Each year a number of wells are sampled. The data is under review and undergoing validation.
Other resources
Visit the Alberta Water Well Information Database for drillers’ reports and other groundwater well data including the Baseline Water Well Test data related to Coalbed Methane (CBM) drilling.
Disclaimer
Water well data is routinely collected from observation wells across the province. These wells are owned and maintained by the Alberta government.
Near real-time groundwater data provided at this site are provisional and preliminary in nature. This data is automatically generated by remote equipment and may not have been reviewed or edited for accuracy. This data is subject to significant change until manually reviewed and corrected.
The accuracy of this data can be affected by many factors including
- malfunction of recording equipment
- accuracy of location / elevation data which may be estimated
Please exercise caution and carefully consider the provisional nature of the information provided. The Government of Alberta assumes no responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of these data and any use of them is entirely at your own risk.
Contact
For enquiries about this web page the GOWN or chemistry well data, please contact the Groundwater Information Centre at:
Email: [email protected]