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PREFACE TO THE SPECIAL ISSUE
6
Results from the Quebec Groundwater Knowledge Acquisition
7
Program
8
Marie Larocque1,2,*, Vincent Cloutier2,3, Jana Levison4, Eric Rosa2,3 9
10
1
Département des sciences de la Terre et de l’atmosphère, Université du Québec à 11
Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada 12
13
2
Centre de recherche GEOTOP, Montréal, Québec, Canada 14
15
3
Groupe de recherche sur l’eau souterraine, Institut de Recherche en Mines et en Envi-16
ronnement, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Amos, Québec, Canada 17
18
4
School of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada 19
20
For the use of the editors
Paper #: Submitted on: Accepted on:
Application - Research – Commentary – Book Review: Copyright Held by:
T2012
21 22
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Groundwater is a crucial supply of freshwater worldwide. It is estimated that 23
groundwater represents more than one third of water withdrawals used for irrigation, 24
domestic, and manufacturing purposes (Döll et al. 2012). In Canada, about 30% of the 25
population (nearly 10 million inhabitants) depends on groundwater for their water supply 26
(CCA 2009). In the Province of Quebec, 20% of the population relies on groundwater for 27
its drinking water over 90% of the inhabited territory (MDDELCC 2018). 28
Globally, several pressures impact the state of groundwater ressources, including 29
urbanization, land and water uses, pollution and climate variability (WWAP 2009). The 30
intensification of industrial and agricultural activities, that can lead to contamination and 31
overexploitation, as well as natural climate variability and climate change, are threats to 32
Canada’s groundwater (CCA 2009; Rivera et al. 2004). It has been recognized at 33
different levels of organizations that the lack of knowledge on groundwater resources and 34
aquifers, as well as the difficulty in accessing water related data, are major obtacles to the 35
implementation of sustainable management of groundwater resources (Government of 36
Québec 2002; CCA 2009; WWAP 2009). 37
To face this challenge in the Province of Quebec, a unique and systematic program of 38
regional hydrogeological mapping, the Groundwater Knowledge Acquisition Program 39
(Programme d’acquisition de connaissances sur les eaux souterraines - PACES), was 40
implemented in 2008 by the Québec Ministry of the Environment (Ministère du 41
Développement durable, de l’Environnement et de la Lutte contre les changements
42
climatiques - MDDELCC) to ensure the protection and long-term sustainability of
43
groundwater resources (MDDELCC 2018). The proposed methodology for the PACES 44
program was based on the experience developed during previous hydrogeological 45
mapping projects in Quebec (pre-PACES projects; Figure 1), including the Portneuf 46
granular aquifers (Fagnan at al. 1999), the Basses-Laurentides fractured aquifer system 47
(Savard et al. 2013), the Châteauguay River Watershed (Nastev and Lamontagne 2010), 48
as well as the Basse and moyenne-Chaudière agricultural region (Tecsult 2008). 49
The general objective of the PACES was to provide an integrated portrait of the 50
groundwater resources of Quebec's municipal regions, both in terms of groundwater 51
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quantity and quality, to better protect and sustainably manage groundwater resources. A 52
total of thirteen regional hydrogeological mapping projects of PACES were completed 53
during the 2009-2015 period (Abitibi-Témiscamingue-1 and -2, Bécancour, Bas-Saint-54
Laurent, Charlevoix−Haute-Côte-Nord, Chaudière-Appalaches, Communauté 55
métropolitaine de Québec, Mauricie, Montérégie-Est, Nicolet−Saint-François, Outaouais, 56
Saguenay−Lac-Saint-Jean, Vaudreuil-Soulanges; Figure 1). These projects were led by 57
research teams from seven Quebec universities (Institut national de la recherche 58
scientifique centre Eau Terre Environnement - INRS-ETE, Université Laval, Université 59
du Québec à Chicoutimi-UQAC, Université du Québec à Montréal-UQAM, Université 60
du Québec à Rimouski-UQAR, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue-UQAT, 61
and Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières-UQTR), in collaboration with regional 62
stakeholders (e.g. Regional Conference of Elected Officials, Conférence régionale des 63
élus – CRÉ); Regional County Municipalities, Municipalités regionals de comtés – MRC;
64
Watershed Organizations, Organismes de bassins versants – OBV), provincial (Ministry 65
of Ariculture, Ministère de l’Agriculture, des Pêcheries et de l’Alimentation – MAPAQ; 66
Ministry of Energy and Natural Ressources, Ministère de l’Énergie et des Ressources 67
naturelles – MERN) and federal (Natural Resources Canada) partners. A unique and
68
efficient inter-university collaborative approach was developed to share equipment and 69
services, co-supervise graduated students, and develop common protocols, from field 70
data acquisition to map production (Palmer et al. 2011). All the PACES projects thus 71
used uniform databases and similair methodologies for development of thematic maps, 72
allowing comparisons between regions. Four new projects were initiated in 2018, with 73
funding from the MDDELCC, and will use the same methodology, thus completing the 74
territory coverage in many regions of the Quebec Province (Figure 1; the new projects are 75
named ACES for Acquisition de connaissances sur les eaux souterraines). 76
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78Figure 1. Location of completed and current groundwater characterization projects in the
79
Province of Quebec. The map illustrates the pre-PACES projects (PORT (dark 80
grey)/Portneuf; AFSOQ/Basses-Laurentides; CHAT/Châteauguay, and CHAUD-A (dark 81
grey)/Basse-Chaudière), the PACES projects from 2009-2015 (AT1 and AT2/Abitibi-82
Témiscamingue−1 and 2, BEC/Bécancour, BSL/Bas-Saint-Laurent, 83
CN/Charlevoix−Haute-Côte-Nord, CHAUD-A (light grey)/Chaudière-Appalaches, 84
CMQ/Communauté métropolitaine de Québec, MAUR/Mauricie, MONT/Montérégie-85
Est, NSF/Nicolet−Saint-François, OUT/Outaouais, SLSJ/Saguenay−Lac-Saint-Jean, 86
Vs/Vaudreuil-Soulanges), and the ACES projects that started in 2018 (KRT/Bas-Saint-87
Laurent-Témiscouata, ESTR/Estrie, LAUR-M/Laurentides, LANAU/Lanaudière, 88
MAUR-E/Mauricie-Est, and PORT (hatched)/Portneuf). 89
The collaborative approach between university researchers lead to the creation in 2011 of 90
the Quebec Groundwater Network (Réseau Québécois sur les Eaux Souterraines – 91
RQES; www.rqes.ca). The mission of the RQES is to consolidate and extend 92
collaborations between university researchers and the Québec Ministry of the 93
Environment, and other governmental and non-governmental organizations, consultants, 94
educational institutions and additional organizations interested in groundwater, with the 95
objective of facilitating groundwater knowledge transfer to water managers. The PACES 96
projects allowed an unprecedented regional scale groundwater characterization of 97
southern Quebec. Nevertheless, despite this major advance, the adequate integration and 98
use of the hydrogeological information in land management remains a challenge, due to 99
the complexity related to data and map interpretation and to the lack of dedicated 100
knowledge transfer initiatives. To face this critical issue, the RQES developed a 101
knowledge exchange strategy that is based on a series of interactive workshops 102
undertaken in all the PACES regions. These workshops helped to optimize the adequate 103
use of quantitative hydrogeological data in land management with the objective of better 104
protecting groundwater resources (Ruiz 2016). 105
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The purpose of this Special Issue was to bring together a sample of the vast new 106
knowledge that was created by the PACES projects across the Province of Quebec 107
between 2009 and 2015. Many of the scientists who were involved in these projects have 108
responded positively to the invitation. This Special Issue contains ten contributions from 109
university researchers and private consultants on relevant topics such as aquifer geometry 110
and hydraulic properties, hydrogeochemistry and isotopic tracers, residence times, and 111
groundwater flow modelling. 112
The studied PACES regions are distributed over a large area of the meridional portion of 113
the Province of Quebec (Figure 1). The territory has highly diversified geology and 114
contrasting climate conditions, thus influencing the hydrogeology of the studied regions. 115
The projects cover three hydrogeolocal regions of Canada described by Rivera (2014): 1) 116
the Precambrian Shield, 2) the St. Lawrence Lowlands, and 3) the Appalachian. These 117
hydrogeological regions correspond to important geological domains of Québec, i.e. the 118
Superior and Grenville provinces, the St. Lawrence Platform, and the Appalachian 119
Province (MRN 2012). The last glaciation/deglaciation cycle, with the deposition of 120
unconsolidated sediments, the formation of proglacial lakes and marine invasions, had 121
major impacts on the shaping of the landscape, as well as on the hydrogeology and 122
hydrogeochemistry of the aquifer systems. Details of these geological contexts are 123
presented in the ten articles. The papers focus on three main components of aquifer 124
characterization, i.e. aquifer geometry (Légaré-Couture et al. 2018; Nadeau et al. 2018; 125
Walter et al. 2018), hydrogeochemistry and isotope tracers (Beaudry et al. 2018; Chaillou 126
et al. 2018; Rey et al. 2018), as well as groundwater flow modeling and particle tracking 127
(Gagné et al. 2018; Janos et al. 2018; Montcoudiol et al. 2018; Turgeon et al. 2018). The 128
paper by Walter et al. (2018) combines the topics of geometry and hydrogeochemistry. 129
In their characterization of the major aquifer systems in the Saguenay – Lac-Saint-Jean 130
region (SLSJ), Walter et al. (2018) provide a comprehensive overview of the three phases 131
of a PACES project and of their outcomes, including defining the aquifer systems, 132
quantifying the hydrogeological properties, and characterizing groundwater quality in a 133
complex graben environment. The authors used their results to develop a conceptual 134
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aquifers in support of sustainable management of regional groundwater ressources. 136
Légaré-Couture et al. (2017) propose a methodology for building a three-dimensional 137
(3D) hydrostratigraphical model of the Quaternary deposits to define the main 138
hydrogeological contexts of granular aquifers that provide important water supplies for 139
most municipalities of the Mauricie region (MAUR). Based on this model, the authors 140
identified four main hydrostratigraphic units for the study area. This refines the 141
understanding of regional aquifers and contibuted to the identification of unexploited 142
aquifers around the Saint-Narcisse morainic complex and along the Saint-Cuthbert Fault. 143
Also focusing on groundwater resources within unconsolidated aquifers, Nadeau et al. 144
(2018) describe a newly developed GIS-based approach facilitating the development of a 145
stratigraphic sequence map for representing the architecture of aquifer– aquitard systems 146
at the regional scale in Abitibi-Témiscamingue regions 1 and 2 (AT1 and AT2). The 147
resulting stratigraphic sequence map was used to document the extent and volume of 148
regional aquifers, as well to build a conceptual model of regional groundwater flow 149
paths. The authors also dicussed the potential contibutions of the stratigraphic sequence 150
map as a tool to support political decision makers facing issues related to groundwater 151
resource protection and sustainable development. 152
Chaillou et al. (2018) present a regional groundwater hydrogeochemical portrait of the 153
Bas-Saint-Laurent region (BSL). The contrasting geology of this region comprises the 154
Appalachians and glacial Quaternary deposits set in close proximity to the coastal 155
environment of the St. Lawrence estuary. The authors used major and trace ions, as well 156
as stable isotopes of water and inorganic carbon to identify seven water facies. They 157
proposed a conceptual model of groundwater flow to explain the hydrogeochemical 158
evolution at the regional scale. Interestingly, their results suggest the absence of modern 159
seawater in the samples despite the proximity of the St. Lawrence estuary. Different 160
geological formations were studied by Beaudry et al. (2018) in the Montérégie region 161
including the St. Lawrence Lowlands, the Appalachian Piedmont and Uplands, and the 162
Monteregian Hills (MONT). Similarly to Chaillou et al. (2018), the authors used major 163
and trace ions, stable isotopes of water and carbon, as well as 14C and 3H to identify the 164
mechanisms controlling groundwater composition and to support the understanding of the 165
aquifer hydrodynamics. Their results provided indications of recharge zones, 166
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groundwater flow zones, and discharge zones. They have also identified an extensive 167
zone of brakish water originating from the Champlain Sea and located in the lower 168
portion of the study area. Rey et al. (2018) have focused on the Barlow-Ojibway Clay 169
Belt of the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region which includes many esker and moraine 170
aquifers (AT1 and AT2). They have used stable isotopes of water and 3H to improve the 171
understanding of the regional groundwater flow system. The results were used to build a 172
regional-scale conceptual model which describes recharge, evaporation, mixing and 173
discharge processes. 174
Gagné et al. (2017) present a 3D model of groundwater flow for the Bécancour and 175
Nicolet watersheds in the Centre-du-Québec region (BEC and NSF). In this region, the 176
main aquifer is located in the sedimentary fractured bedrock and is overlain by till, sand 177
and clay from the Champlain Sea. The spatially distributed recharge was simulated 178
independently with a surface water budget approach. The steady-state MODFLOW 179
model (Harbaugh 2005) was calibrated using measured heads and baseflows with PEST 180
(Doherty 2015). The authors have shown that isotope-derived groundwater travel times 181
and major ion chemistry can be used to validate the model. Janos et al. (2018) developed 182
a vertical 2D steady-state flow model with the FLONET/TR2 numerical code (Molson 183
and Frind 2017), and calibrated it with PEST using measured heads for the Chaudière-184
Appalaches region (CHAUD-A). The model simulated groundwater ages that were used 185
to show that the area is dominated by local scale flow systems, thus confirming the 186
conceptual model identified using hydrogeochemical variables. The authors also 187
investigated the role of faults in disturbing groundwater age patterns. Montcoudiol et al. 188
(2017) have also used the FLONET/TR2 numerical code to simulate 2D steady-state 189
groundwater flow in the fractured bedrock of the Canadian Shield overlain by sand, 190
gravel and clay in the Outaouais region (OUT). Their model was calibrated using heads 191
and measured 3H values and helped to validate and update a conceptual model of 192
geochemical evolution. Turgeon et al. (2018) used the integrated the MikeSHE flow 193
model (DHI 2007) to simulate transient-state groundwater and surface water interactions 194
in the Raquette River watershed of the Vaudreuil-soulanges region (VS). The complex 195
geology of the watershed is composed of sedimentary bedrock and of the Rigaud 196
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using river flowates and heads and provided a good insight into the watershed surface and 198
groundwater flow. The authors identified areas of possible improvements in the model, 199
notably the explicit simulation of infiltration processes in the unsaturated zone. 200
The topics covered by this Special Issue do not address all the topics covered in the 201
PACES projects. Many other papers have been published in different journals on a wide 202
array of groundwater-related issues derived directly from the PACES projects or closely 203
linked to them. In terms of physical hydrogeology, the PACES related studies allowed 204
the development of methods to assess groundwater recharge (e.g. Gosselin et al. 2016; 205
Huet et al. 2016), to estimate transmissivity from specific capacity data (e.g. Richard et 206
al. 2014; Laurencelle and Lefebvre 2018) and to improve the spatial analysis of 207
piezometric data (e.g. Tremblay et al. 2015). Other studies allowed better highlighting the 208
role of groundwater in river flow or peatland-aquifer interactions (e.g. Ferlatte et al. 209
2015; Rosa et al. 2018). The use of groundwater geochemistry further allowed 210
assessment of chemical evolution of groundwater along flowpaths (e.g. Ghesquière et al. 211
2015; Montcoudiol et al 2015) and deciphering the processes influencing the occurrence 212
of geogenic arsenic in fractured bedrock aquifers (e.g. Bondu et al. 2017). Other studies 213
examining groundwater geochemistry focused on evaluating groundwater vulnerability 214
(e.g. Meyzonnat et al. 2016) and documenting the concentrations of emerging 215
contaminants such as pesticides and pharmaceutically active compounds in groundwater 216
(e.g. Saby et al. 2016). Studies focusing on the use of GIS further allowed the 217
development of a method for supporting groundwater protection in unconfined granular 218
aquifers (e.g. Nadeau et al. 2015), as well the development of sustainable groundwater 219
resource indicators to support knowledge transfer initiatives (Lefebvre et al. 2016). 220
Moreover, the PACES projects have provided large databases and new knowledge about 221
Québec aquifers. Many challenges now arise including, for example, how to maintain up-222
to-date databases, how to monitor groundwater quality and quantity over the long-term, 223
or how changing climate conditions and changing land use will impact groundwater 224
resources. The research is ongoing in many of these domains. 225
We believe that this Special Issue provides a valuable snapshot of the current, state-of-226
the-art knowledge on groundwater resources in the Province of Quebec. It summarizes 227
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new knowledge on groundwater availability, groundwater flow conditions, aquifer 228
recharge and groundwater quality that occur in this part of Canada. It also presents a 229
portrait of state-of-the art methods for aquifer characterization and how they can be used 230
in different geological settings. It is our hope that this Special Issue will be a reference 231
for hydrogeologists across the country and motivate the initiation of new research for a 232
better understanding of our groundwater resources. 233
Acknowledgements
234
This Special Issue has brought together hydrogeologists that were involved in the recent 235
Groundwater Knowledge Acquisition Program. We wish to thank the authors who have 236
contributed to advancing knowledge about groundwater resources in the Province of 237
Quebec. We acknowledge the financial contribution of the Quebec Ministry of the 238
Environment (Ministère du Développement durable, de l’Environnement et de la Lutte 239
contre les changements climatiques) through the Groundwater Knowledge Acquisition
240
Program (PACES), as well as the contribution of all the regional partners that were 241
involved in the projects. We also thank the reviewers who have contributed to the high 242
scientific level achieved by this Special Issue and all its comprising articles. 243
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d’approvisionnement en eau Canada‐Québec (PAECQ) and managed by the Conseil 375
pour le développement de l’agriculture du Québec (CDAQ), 142 p. 376
Tremblay, Y., J.-M. Lemieux, R. Fortier, J. Molson, R. Therrien, P. Therrien, G. 377
Comeau, and M.-C. Talbot Poulin. 2015. Semi-automated filtering of data outliers 378
to improve spatial analysis of piezometric data. Hydrogeology Journal 23(5). 851-379
868. doi: 10.1007/s10040-015-1257-y. 380
Turgeon, F., M. Larocque, G. Meyzonnat, S. Dorner, and M.A. Bourgault. 2018. 381
Examining the challenges of simulating surface water – groundwater interactions in 382
a post-glacial environment. Canadian Water Resources Journal
383
doi:10.1080/07011784.2017.1414635. 384
Walter, J., A. Rouleau, M. Lambert, R. Chesnaux, and R. Daigneault. 2018. 385
Characterization of general and singular features of major aquifer systems in the 386
Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region. Canadian Water Resources Journal
387
doi:10.1080/07011784.2018.1433069. 388
WWAP (World Water Assessment Programme). 2009. The United Nations World Water 389
Development Report 3: Water in a Changing World. Paris: UNESCO ISBN:
978-9-390
23104-095-5, 429 p. 391
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Figure Caption
393
Figure 1. Location of completed and current groundwater characterization projects in the
394
Province of Quebec. The map illustrates the pre-PACES projects (PORT (dark 395
grey)/Portneuf; AFSOQ/Basses-Laurentides; CHAT/Châteauguay, and CHAUD-A (dark 396
grey)/Basse-Chaudière), the PACES projects from 2009-2015 (AT1 and AT2/Abitibi-397
Témiscamingue−1 and 2, BEC/Bécancour, BSL/Bas-Saint-Laurent, 398
CN/Charlevoix−Haute-Côte-Nord, CHAUD-A (light grey)/Chaudière-Appalaches, 399
CMQ/Communauté métropolitaine de Québec, MAUR/Mauricie, MONT/Montérégie-400
Est, NSF/Nicolet−Saint-François, OUT/Outaouais, SLSJ/Saguenay−Lac-Saint-Jean, 401
Vs/Vaudreuil-Soulanges), and the ACES projects that started in 2018 (KRT/Bas-Saint-402
Laurent-Témiscouata, ESTR/Estrie, LAUR-M/Laurentides, LANAU/Lanaudière, 403
MAUR-E/Mauricie-Est, and PORT (hatched)/Portneuf). 404
405 406
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Journal submission checklist:
407
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guidelines and template provided by Canadian Water Resources Journal, including: 409
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B with variations as noted in the author template. [_X__] 3. Sections of the manuscript are unnumbered, headers conform to the
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PREFACE TO THE SPECIAL ISSUE
412
Results from the Quebec Groundwater Knowledge Acquisition
413
Program
414
Marie Larocque1,2,*, Vincent Cloutier2,3, Jana Levison4, Eric Rosa2,3 415
416
1
Département des sciences de la Terre et de l’atmosphère, Université du Québec à 417
Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada 418
419
2
Centre de recherche GEOTOP, Montréal, Québec, Canada 420
421
3
Groupe de recherche sur l’eau souterraine, Institut de Recherche en Mines et en Envi-422
ronnement, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Amos, Québec, Canada 423
424
4
School of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada 425
426
For the use of the editors
Paper #: Submitted on: Accepted on:
Application - Research – Commentary – Book Review: Copyright Held by:
T2012
427 428
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Groundwater is a crucial supply of freshwater worldwide. It is estimated that 429
groundwater represents more than one third of water withdrawals used for irrigation, 430
domestic, and manufacturing purposes (Döll et al. 2012). In Canada, about 30% of the 431
population (nearly 10 million inhabitants) depends on groundwater for their water supply 432
(CCA 2009). In the Province of Quebec, 20% of the population relies on groundwater for 433
its drinking water over 90% of the inhabited territory (MDDELCC 2018). 434
Globally, several pressures impact the state of groundwater ressources, including 435
urbanization, land and water uses, pollution and climate variability (WWAP 2009). The 436
intensification of industrial and agricultural activities, that can lead to contamination and 437
overexploitation, as well as natural climate variability and climate change, are threats to 438
Canada’s groundwater (CCA 2009; Rivera et al. 2004). It has been recognized at 439
different levels of organizations that the lack of knowledge on groundwater resources and 440
aquifers, as well as the difficulty in accessing water related data, are major obtacles to the 441
implementation of sustainable management of groundwater resources (Government of 442
Québec 2002; CCA 2009; WWAP 2009). 443
To face this challenge in the Province of Quebec, a unique and systematic program of 444
regional hydrogeological mapping, the Groundwater Knowledge Acquisition Program 445
(Programme d’acquisition de connaissances sur les eaux souterraines - PACES), was 446
implemented in 2008 by the Québec Ministry of the Environment (Ministère du 447
Développement durable, de l’Environnement et de la Lutte contre les changements
448
climatiques - MDDELCC) to ensure the protection and long-term sustainability of
449
groundwater resources (MDDELCC 2018). The proposed methodology for the PACES 450
program was based on the experience developed during previous hydrogeological 451
mapping projects in Quebec (pre-PACES projects; Figure 1), including the Portneuf 452
granular aquifers (Fagnan at al. 1999), the Basses-Laurentides fractured aquifer system 453
(Savard et al. 2013), the Châteauguay River Watershed (Nastev and Lamontagne 2010), 454
as well as the Basse and moyenne-Chaudière agricultural region (Tecsult 2008). 455
The general objective of the PACES was to provide an integrated portrait of the 456
groundwater resources of Quebec's municipal regions, both in terms of groundwater 457
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quantity and quality, to better protect and sustainably manage groundwater resources. A 458
total of thirteen regional hydrogeological mapping projects of PACES were completed 459
during the 2009-2015 period (Abitibi-Témiscamingue-1 and -2, Bécancour, Bas-Saint-460
Laurent, Charlevoix−Haute-Côte-Nord, Chaudière-Appalaches, Communauté 461
métropolitaine de Québec, Mauricie, Montérégie-Est, Nicolet−Saint-François, Outaouais, 462
Saguenay−Lac-Saint-Jean, Vaudreuil-Soulanges; Figure 1). These projects were led by 463
research teams from seven Quebec universities (Institut national de la recherche 464
scientifique centre Eau Terre Environnement - INRS-ETE, Université Laval, Université 465
du Québec à Chicoutimi-UQAC, Université du Québec à Montréal-UQAM, Université 466
du Québec à Rimouski-UQAR, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue-UQAT, 467
and Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières-UQTR), in collaboration with regional 468
stakeholders (e.g. Regional Conference of Elected Officials, Conférence régionale des 469
élus – CRÉ); Regional County Municipalities, Municipalités regionals de comtés – MRC;
470
Watershed Organizations, Organismes de bassins versants – OBV), provincial (Ministry 471
of Ariculture, Ministère de l’Agriculture, des Pêcheries et de l’Alimentation – MAPAQ; 472
Ministry of Energy and Natural Ressources, Ministère de l’Énergie et des Ressources 473
naturelles – MERN) and federal (Natural Resources Canada) partners. A unique and
474
efficient inter-university collaborative approach was developed to share equipment and 475
services, co-supervise graduated students, and develop common protocols, from field 476
data acquisition to map production (Palmer et al. 2011). All the PACES projects thus 477
used uniform databases and similair methodologies for development of thematic maps, 478
allowing comparisons between regions. Four new projects were initiated in 2018, with 479
funding from the MDDELCC, and will use the same methodology, thus completing the 480
territory coverage in many regions of the Quebec Province (Figure 1; the new projects are 481
named ACES for Acquisition de connaissances sur les eaux souterraines). 482
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484Figure 1. Location of completed and current groundwater characterization projects in the
485
Province of Quebec. The map illustrates the pre-PACES projects (PORT (dark 486
grey)/Portneuf; AFSOQ/Basses-Laurentides; CHAT/Châteauguay, and CHAUD-A (dark 487
grey)/Basse-Chaudière), the PACES projects from 2009-2015 (AT1 and AT2/Abitibi-488
Témiscamingue−1 and 2, BEC/Bécancour, BSL/Bas-Saint-Laurent, 489
CN/Charlevoix−Haute-Côte-Nord, CHAUD-A (light grey)/Chaudière-Appalaches, 490
CMQ/Communauté métropolitaine de Québec, MAUR/Mauricie, MONT/Montérégie-491
Est, NSF/Nicolet−Saint-François, OUT/Outaouais, SLSJ/Saguenay−Lac-Saint-Jean, 492
Vs/Vaudreuil-Soulanges), and the ACES projects that started in 2018 (KRT/Bas-Saint-493
Laurent-Témiscouata, ESTR/Estrie, LAUR-M/Laurentides, LANAU/Lanaudière, 494
MAUR-E/Mauricie-Est, and PORT (hatched)/Portneuf). 495
The collaborative approach between university researchers lead to the creation in 2011 of 496
the Quebec Groundwater Network (Réseau Québécois sur les Eaux Souterraines – 497
RQES; www.rqes.ca). The mission of the RQES is to consolidate and extend 498
collaborations between university researchers and the Québec Ministry of the 499
Environment, and other governmental and non-governmental organizations, consultants, 500
educational institutions and additional organizations interested in groundwater, with the 501
objective of facilitating groundwater knowledge transfer to water managers. The PACES 502
projects allowed an unprecedented regional scale groundwater characterization of 503
southern Quebec. Nevertheless, despite this major advance, the adequate integration and 504
use of the hydrogeological information in land management remains a challenge, due to 505
the complexity related to data and map interpretation and to the lack of dedicated 506
knowledge transfer initiatives. To face this critical issue, the RQES developed a 507
knowledge exchange strategy that is based on a series of interactive workshops 508
undertaken in all the PACES regions. These workshops helped to optimize the adequate 509
use of quantitative hydrogeological data in land management with the objective of better 510
protecting groundwater resources (Ruiz 2016). 511
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The purpose of this Special Issue was to bring together a sample of the vast new 512
knowledge that was created by the PACES projects across the Province of Quebec 513
between 2009 and 2015. Many of the scientists who were involved in these projects have 514
responded positively to the invitation. This Special Issue contains ten contributions from 515
university researchers and private consultants on relevant topics such as aquifer geometry 516
and hydraulic properties, hydrogeochemistry and isotopic tracers, residence times, and 517
groundwater flow modelling. 518
The studied PACES regions are distributed over a large area of the meridional portion of 519
the Province of Quebec (Figure 1). The territory has highly diversified geology and 520
contrasting climate conditions, thus influencing the hydrogeology of the studied regions. 521
The projects cover three hydrogeolocal regions of Canada described by Rivera (2014): 1) 522
the Precambrian Shield, 2) the St. Lawrence Lowlands, and 3) the Appalachian. These 523
hydrogeological regions correspond to important geological domains of Québec, i.e. the 524
Superior and Grenville provinces, the St. Lawrence Platform, and the Appalachian 525
Province (MRN 2012). The last glaciation/deglaciation cycle, with the deposition of 526
unconsolidated sediments, the formation of proglacial lakes and marine invasions, had 527
major impacts on the shaping of the landscape, as well as on the hydrogeology and 528
hydrogeochemistry of the aquifer systems. Details of these geological contexts are 529
presented in the ten articles. The papers focus on three main components of aquifer 530
characterization, i.e. aquifer geometry (Légaré-Couture et al. 2018; Nadeau et al. 2018; 531
Walter et al. 2018), hydrogeochemistry and isotope tracers (Beaudry et al. 2018; Chaillou 532
et al. 2018; Rey et al. 2018), as well as groundwater flow modeling and particle tracking 533
(Gagné et al. 2018; Janos et al. 2018; Montcoudiol et al. 2018; Turgeon et al. 2018). The 534
paper by Walter et al. (2018) combines the topics of geometry and hydrogeochemistry. 535
In their characterization of the major aquifer systems in the Saguenay – Lac-Saint-Jean 536
region (SLSJ), Walter et al. (2018) provide a comprehensive overview of the three phases 537
of a PACES project and of their outcomes, including defining the aquifer systems, 538
quantifying the hydrogeological properties, and characterizing groundwater quality in a 539
complex graben environment. The authors used their results to develop a conceptual 540
model of regional hydrostratigraphic features and groundwater quality of the major 541
For Peer Review Only
aquifers in support of sustainable management of regional groundwater ressources. 542
Légaré-Couture et al. (2017) propose a methodology for building a three-dimensional 543
(3D) hydrostratigraphical model of the Quaternary deposits to define the main 544
hydrogeological contexts of granular aquifers that provide important water supplies for 545
most municipalities of the Mauricie region (MAUR). Based on this model, the authors 546
identified four main hydrostratigraphic units for the study area. This refines the 547
understanding of regional aquifers and contibuted to the identification of unexploited 548
aquifers around the Saint-Narcisse morainic complex and along the Saint-Cuthbert Fault. 549
Also focusing on groundwater resources within unconsolidated aquifers, Nadeau et al. 550
(2018) describe a newly developed GIS-based approach facilitating the development of a 551
stratigraphic sequence map for representing the architecture of aquifer– aquitard systems 552
at the regional scale in Abitibi-Témiscamingue regions 1 and 2 (AT1 and AT2). The 553
resulting stratigraphic sequence map was used to document the extent and volume of 554
regional aquifers, as well to build a conceptual model of regional groundwater flow 555
paths. The authors also dicussed the potential contibutions of the stratigraphic sequence 556
map as a tool to support political decision makers facing issues related to groundwater 557
resource protection and sustainable development. 558
Chaillou et al. (2018) present a regional groundwater hydrogeochemical portrait of the 559
Bas-Saint-Laurent region (BSL). The contrasting geology of this region comprises the 560
Appalachians and glacial Quaternary deposits set in close proximity to the coastal 561
environment of the St. Lawrence estuary. The authors used major and trace ions, as well 562
as stable isotopes of water and inorganic carbon to identify seven water facies. They 563
proposed a conceptual model of groundwater flow to explain the hydrogeochemical 564
evolution at the regional scale. Interestingly, their results suggest the absence of modern 565
seawater in the samples despite the proximity of the St. Lawrence estuary. Different 566
geological formations were studied by Beaudry et al. (2018) in the Montérégie region 567
including the St. Lawrence Lowlands, the Appalachian Piedmont and Uplands, and the 568
Monteregian Hills (MONT). Similarly to Chaillou et al. (2018), the authors used major 569
and trace ions, stable isotopes of water and carbon, as well as 14C and 3H to identify the 570
mechanisms controlling groundwater composition and to support the understanding of the 571
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groundwater flow zones, and discharge zones. They have also identified an extensive 573
zone of brakish water originating from the Champlain Sea and located in the lower 574
portion of the study area. Rey et al. (2018) have focused on the Barlow-Ojibway Clay 575
Belt of the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region which includes many esker and moraine 576
aquifers (AT1 and AT2). They have used stable isotopes of water and 3H to improve the 577
understanding of the regional groundwater flow system. The results were used to build a 578
regional-scale conceptual model which describes recharge, evaporation, mixing and 579
discharge processes. 580
Gagné et al. (2017) present a 3D model of groundwater flow for the Bécancour and 581
Nicolet watersheds in the Centre-du-Québec region (BEC and NSF). In this region, the 582
main aquifer is located in the sedimentary fractured bedrock and is overlain by till, sand 583
and clay from the Champlain Sea. The spatially distributed recharge was simulated 584
independently with a surface water budget approach. The steady-state MODFLOW 585
model (Harbaugh 2005) was calibrated using measured heads and baseflows with PEST 586
(Doherty 2015). The authors have shown that isotope-derived groundwater travel times 587
and major ion chemistry can be used to validate the model. Janos et al. (2018) developed 588
a vertical 2D steady-state flow model with the FLONET/TR2 numerical code (Molson 589
and Frind 2017), and calibrated it with PEST using measured heads for the Chaudière-590
Appalaches region (CHAUD-A). The model simulated groundwater ages that were used 591
to show that the area is dominated by local scale flow systems, thus confirming the 592
conceptual model identified using hydrogeochemical variables. The authors also 593
investigated the role of faults in disturbing groundwater age patterns. Montcoudiol et al. 594
(2017) have also used the FLONET/TR2 numerical code to simulate 2D steady-state 595
groundwater flow in the fractured bedrock of the Canadian Shield overlain by sand, 596
gravel and clay in the Outaouais region (OUT). Their model was calibrated using heads 597
and measured 3H values and helped to validate and update a conceptual model of 598
geochemical evolution. Turgeon et al. (2018) used the integrated the MikeSHE flow 599
model (DHI 2007) to simulate transient-state groundwater and surface water interactions 600
in the Raquette River watershed of the Vaudreuil-soulanges region (VS). The complex 601
geology of the watershed is composed of sedimentary bedrock and of the Rigaud 602
Monteregian Hill, with till and thick sand and clay deposits. The model was calibrated 603
For Peer Review Only
using river flowates and heads and provided a good insight into the watershed surface and 604
groundwater flow. The authors identified areas of possible improvements in the model, 605
notably the explicit simulation of infiltration processes in the unsaturated zone. 606
The topics covered by this Special Issue do not address all the topics covered in the 607
PACES projects. Many other papers have been published in different journals on a wide 608
array of groundwater-related issues derived directly from the PACES projects or closely 609
linked to them. In terms of physical hydrogeology, the PACES related studies allowed 610
the development of methods to assess groundwater recharge (e.g. Gosselin et al. 2016; 611
Huet et al. 2016), to estimate transmissivity from specific capacity data (e.g. Richard et 612
al. 2014; Laurencelle and Lefebvre 2018) and to improve the spatial analysis of 613
piezometric data (e.g. Tremblay et al. 2015). Other studies allowed better highlighting the 614
role of groundwater in river flow or peatland-aquifer interactions (e.g. Ferlatte et al. 615
2015; Rosa et al. 2018). The use of groundwater geochemistry further allowed 616
assessment of chemical evolution of groundwater along flowpaths (e.g. Ghesquière et al. 617
2015; Montcoudiol et al 2015) and deciphering the processes influencing the occurrence 618
of geogenic arsenic in fractured bedrock aquifers (e.g. Bondu et al. 2017). Other studies 619
examining groundwater geochemistry focused on evaluating groundwater vulnerability 620
(e.g. Meyzonnat et al. 2016) and documenting the concentrations of emerging 621
contaminants such as pesticides and pharmaceutically active compounds in groundwater 622
(e.g. Saby et al. 2016). Studies focusing on the use of GIS further allowed the 623
development of a method for supporting groundwater protection in unconfined granular 624
aquifers (e.g. Nadeau et al. 2015), as well the development of sustainable groundwater 625
resource indicators to support knowledge transfer initiatives (Lefebvre et al. 2016). 626
Moreover, the PACES projects have provided large databases and new knowledge about 627
Québec aquifers. Many challenges now arise including, for example, how to maintain up-628
to-date databases, how to monitor groundwater quality and quantity over the long-term, 629
or how changing climate conditions and changing land use will impact groundwater 630
resources. The research is ongoing in many of these domains. 631
We believe that this Special Issue provides a valuable snapshot of the current, state-of-632
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new knowledge on groundwater availability, groundwater flow conditions, aquifer 634
recharge and groundwater quality that occur in this part of Canada. It also presents a 635
portrait of state-of-the art methods for aquifer characterization and how they can be used 636
in different geological settings. It is our hope that this Special Issue will be a reference 637
for hydrogeologists across the country and motivate the initiation of new research for a 638
better understanding of our groundwater resources. 639
Acknowledgements
640
This Special Issue has brought together hydrogeologists that were involved in the recent 641
Groundwater Knowledge Acquisition Program. We wish to thank the authors who have 642
contributed to advancing knowledge about groundwater resources in the Province of 643
Quebec. We acknowledge the financial contribution of the Quebec Ministry of the 644
Environment (Ministère du Développement durable, de l’Environnement et de la Lutte 645
contre les changements climatiques) through the Groundwater Knowledge Acquisition
646
Program (PACES), as well as the contribution of all the regional partners that were 647
involved in the projects. We also thank the reviewers who have contributed to the high 648
scientific level achieved by this Special Issue and all its comprising articles. 649
For Peer Review Only
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Bondu, R., V. Cloutier, É. Rosa, and M. Benzaazoua. 2017. Mobility and speciation of 654
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