Investigating groundwater recharge rates and seasonality under irrigated and dryland conditions at two agricultural sites near Lethbridge, Alberta

dc.contributor.advisorCey, Edwin E.
dc.contributor.authorHughes, Alexandra Therese
dc.contributor.committeememberHayashi, Masaki
dc.contributor.committeememberTutolo, Benjamin M.
dc.date2019-11
dc.date.accessioned2019-08-14T14:16:56Z
dc.date.available2019-08-14T14:16:56Z
dc.date.issued2019-08-09
dc.description.abstractIn order to better understand the impacts of land use on groundwater resources, this study investigated the effects of irrigation on groundwater recharge at two study sites near Lethbridge, Alberta. Depression-focused and diffuse recharge rates were quantified beneath uplands, flatlands and depressions under irrigated and dryland conditions using the chloride mass balance, water table fluctuation and water balance methods. Seasonality of recharge was also considered (i.e., summer vs. overwinter). Results show long-term recharge rates of 88 ± 26 to 113 ± 31 mm/yr beneath depressions, 50 ± 21 to 29 ± 44 mm/yr beneath flatlands and -4 ± 5 to 4 ± 2 mm/yr beneath uplands. Overwinter (November 2017-April 2018) snowmelt recharge was the same for irrigated and dryland flatlands (between 33 ± 7 and 68 ± 113 mm). Recharge during the 2018 growing season was 42 ± 141 and 21 ± 122 mm beneath the irrigated and dryland flatlands, respectively. Numerical model simulations showed 3.1 times more summer recharge under irrigated versus dryland flatland conditions. Irrigation was shown to affect both the rate and seasonality of recharge at the two study sites.en_US
dc.identifier.citationHughes, A. T. (2019). Investigating groundwater recharge rates and seasonality under irrigated and dryland conditions at two agricultural sites near Lethbridge, Alberta (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.en_US
dc.identifier.doihttp://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/36811
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1880/110720
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.publisher.facultyScienceen_US
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Calgaryen
dc.rightsUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.en_US
dc.subject.classificationSoil Scienceen_US
dc.subject.classificationGeochemistryen_US
dc.subject.classificationGeologyen_US
dc.subject.classificationHydrologyen_US
dc.subject.classificationEnvironmental Sciencesen_US
dc.titleInvestigating groundwater recharge rates and seasonality under irrigated and dryland conditions at two agricultural sites near Lethbridge, Albertaen_US
dc.typemaster thesisen_US
thesis.degree.disciplineGeoscienceen_US
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of Calgaryen_US
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science (MSc)en_US
ucalgary.item.requestcopytrueen_US
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