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M apping Alberta's surface water resources for the period 1971–2000
Author(s) -
Kienzle Stefan W.,
Mueller Markus
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
the canadian geographer / le géographe canadien
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.35
H-Index - 46
eISSN - 1541-0064
pISSN - 0008-3658
DOI - 10.1111/j.1541-0064.2013.12050.x
Subject(s) - watershed , environmental science , surface runoff , streamflow , hydrology (agriculture) , water resources , water quality , precipitation , surface water , period (music) , drainage basin , water resource management , geography , geology , meteorology , environmental engineering , cartography , ecology , physics , geotechnical engineering , machine learning , computer science , acoustics , biology
Although the sustainability and wealth of Alberta is closely linked to the quantity, quality, and management of its water resources, the province lacks watershed‐based inventories of its water supplies. The mean annual water yield for 287 gauged watersheds across Alberta was calculated for the period 1971–2000 by relating available streamflow records with the respective watershed areas. The percent contribution of each watershed relative to the outlet of each of the 16 major river basins located in Alberta was computed, which enabled the identification of the most important water‐producing regions. The integration of high‐resolution precipitation normal maps, available for the same period, enabled the calculation of mean annual runoff coefficients and the determination of mean annual regional water balances. These analyses resulted in important water resources baseline data, against which impacts of environmental and climate change can be compared. All data are available online in the form of spreadsheets and shapefiles .