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Estimating Stable Measured Values and Detecting Anomalies in Groundwater Geochemistry Time Series Data Across the Athabasca Oil Sands Area, Canada

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Abstract

Regional groundwater monitoring in the Athabasca region of Alberta, Canada, provides information on groundwater quality and geochemical changes over time, including data useful for evaluating potential impacts of industrial activity such as oil sands mining and in situ operations. Data collected from over 5000 wells from the 1950s to 2014, including 161 wells from government’s monitoring network, were used to develop and apply bootstrap techniques for the detection of changes in groundwater geochemistry over time and at specific points in time. Increasing temporal anomalies were identified in Cl, TDS, B, and naphthenic acids in the McMurray formation across 2003 and 2008, while decreasing anomalies were found for SO4. Temporal variance for 15 indicators was quantified for a smooth bootstrap approach to arrive at stable values representative of the most recent samples taken from wells in the study area. Stable values revealed sampling bias in the Devonian, Grand Rapids, Empress, Channel Beverly, and Muriel Lake formations suggesting expansion of sampling may be necessary. Although temporal anomalies were found in the McMurray formation, sampling bias was not identified. The entropy and relative magnitude of time series were evaluated to identify candidate wells for continued observations, which consist of wells with low measurements and low entropy that are near active industry lease boundaries. Temporal anomalies, stable values, and entropy were combined into type-well information to provide plots for visual inspection and interpretation. Stable values are useful for regional mapping, for detecting future changes and trends, and for identifying areas of interest warranting further investigation.

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Acknowledgments

This work was funded under the Oil Sands Monitoring Program, of the Government of Alberta (Alberta Environment and Parks) and Environment and Climate Change Canada, and is a contribution to the Program but does not necessarily reflect the position of the Program. A significant amount of data collection and processing was done by Don Jones of InnoTech Alberta to supplement the work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Computational Geostatistics, 6-050 Natural Resources Engineering Facility, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2W2, Canada

    John G. Manchuk

  2. InnoTech Alberta, 3608-33 St NW, Calgary, AB, T2L 2A6, Canada

    Jean S. Birks

  3. Alberta Environment and Parks, 3535 Research Road NW, Calgary, AB, T2L 2K8, Canada

    Cynthia N. McClain

  4. Alberta Environment and Parks, 7th Floor, Oxbridge Place, 9820-106 Street, Edmonton, AB, T5K 2J6, Canada

    Guy Bayegnak

  5. InnoTech Alberta, 3-4476 Markham Street, Victoria, BC, V8Z 7X8, Canada

    John J. Gibson

  6. Centre for Computational Geostatistics, 6-247 Donadeo Innovation Centre for Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T6G 1H9, Canada

    Clayton V. Deutsch

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  1. John G. Manchuk
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  2. Jean S. Birks
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  3. Cynthia N. McClain
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  4. Guy Bayegnak
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  5. John J. Gibson
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  6. Clayton V. Deutsch
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Correspondence to John G. Manchuk.

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Manchuk, J.G., Birks, J.S., McClain, C.N. et al. Estimating Stable Measured Values and Detecting Anomalies in Groundwater Geochemistry Time Series Data Across the Athabasca Oil Sands Area, Canada. Nat Resour Res 30, 1755–1779 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11053-020-09801-5

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