Emerging groundwater and surface water trends in Alberta, Canada

Groundwater and surface water support all of the human water needs. However, due to climate change, the extent and properties of permafrost and seasonally frozen grounds are changing in cold regions. This can substantially impact on both groundwater and surface water resources. We present here the decade-scale change in groundwater and surface water levels in the entire province of Alberta, Canada. We discuss the patterns of groundwater with their variations due to rainfall and snowmelt water, which are the two major components for groundwater recharge as well as surface water variability. More research remains to be required in groundwater hydrology at the cold regions to properly decipher different hydrologic changes and their feedbacks on other environmental factors.