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Groundwater provides
23 percent of the Province's population with drinking water,
comprises 9 percent of total water consumption in the Province
and represents 25 percent of the groundwater use in the nation
( Hess, 1986 ). It has been recognized for a number of years
that a greater understanding of the existence and characteristics
of aquifers in British Columbia is essential. The 1993 discussion
paper "Stewardship of the Water of British Columbia"
proposed that a program for classifying and mapping aquifers
in groundwater management areas be initiated.
In 1994, a map
based Aquifer
Classification System was developed for the Ministry of
Environment, Lands and Parks "Water Management Program"
to identify, map and categorize aquifers using data from the
provincial water well database. The objective of this aquifer
classification system is to inventory and prioritize aquifers
for planning, management and protection of the Province's
groundwater resource. To date, over 438 aquifers have been
delineated. Individual aquifers in the format as shown by
the example of the Duncan Aquifer to the lower left are displayed
through a query of the aquifer
image portfolio.
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Status
of Aquifer
Classification Mapping
(Click map for larger view)
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