Climate scientists raising concerns over Alberta's groundwater levels amid Prairie drought

In the middle of an Alberta mountain playground, adjacent to a popular ski resort, there's a well sunk into the bedrock that has John Pomeroy worried.

The Marmot Creek well in Kananaskis Country has been there for generations, says the University of Saskatchewan water scientist. It's one of the few groundwater monitoring wells that Alberta has in the mountains. Away from any human influence, it's a good indicator of what's actually happening.

"The lowest water levels are all in the last seven years and the levels are much lower now than they were in the '70s and '80s," Pomeroy said.

"It'll be a climate signal that we're seeing."

As predicted by climate change models, drought is desiccating the Prairies, especially southern Alberta. The province has already warned municipalities to plan for another dry summer, is preparing help for farmers and aims to mobilize firefighting teams early.

But those measures address surface water. About 600,000 Albertans depend on groundwater, and scientists and rural officials say not enough is known about the effects years of drought have had on the unseen flows beneath our feet.

"We have to make sure we're managing groundwater and surface water as a common resource," said Pomeroy. "If we deplete one, we're depleting the other."

So far, the signals are mixed. Alberta maintains a network of more than 200 monitoring wells across the province and many show water levels that are stable or even increasing.

But many are not.

Masaki Hayashi, a University of Calgary hydrologist, pointed to wells in Rocky View County outside Calgary, home to 40,000 people.

"It's been another year of drought," he said. "Now these wells are hitting all-time lows."

Long-term trends are ambiguous, he said. Precipitation cycles between wet years and dry.

But trends are leaning toward the latter. Four dry years, 2015-18, were followed by a couple of wet ones. Precipitation data at the Calgary airport shows the last three have been dry again.

Creeks, rivers and lakes are all connected and what seeps up must first soak down.