Alberta Energy Regulator - Request for Proposal - 24RFP-SR007 Acquisition of Geophysical Data in the South Saskatchewan River Basin to support Aquifer Mapping

The Alberta Geological Survey (AGS), a branch of the AER, is collaborating with Alberta Environment & Protected Areas to evaluate groundwater resources in southern Alberta. Various pressures from widespread drought in Alberta are increasing demand on the province’s water supplies across all water-use sectors. In this context, continued economic development within the closed basins of southern Alberta has accentuated the need for improved understanding of groundwater resources, their availability and vulnerability. The AGS is undertaking high-resolution geological mapping and modelling in the South Saskatchewan River Basin (SSRB) and Milk River Basin (MRB) with an emphasis on the sediments above the bedrock (i.e., Neogene-Quaternary systems) and bedrock aquifer systems (i.e., Cretaceous-aged). A multi-disciplinary project team – comprising expertise in geology, hydrogeology, geomodelling, GIS and remote-sensing, and geophysics – has been established with the objective to inventory groundwater availability and quality to improve access to groundwater for regulatory decisions. One component of our project involves the acquisition, inversion, and interpretation of new geophysical data to identify and characterize aquifers of interest. Electromagnetic (EM) methods are particularly attractive for their efficient data collection and ability to distinguish porous sediments saturated with non-saline groundwater from background geology. Inevitably it is a challenge to conduct a regional, basin-scale groundwater evaluation that informs watershed-scale decision making on groundwater availability and authorizations. As it pertains to the geophysical data acquisition, the AGS has identified ‘investigation targets’ that detail prospective geographical areas of interest and their corresponding geological setting. These investigation targets should be used as a guide by the Vendor to identify and propose suitable geophysical technology for the size and geological conditions the AGS is considering. The AGS investigation targets are further described in Appendix 7. The successful Vendor on this RFP will lead the effort to acquire new geophysical data, optimize the use of existing EM data (Appendix 8), and interpret the results in the context of improving knowledge of surficial and bedrock aquifer systems. The project scope of work outlined in this RFP is required to be completed by March 28, 2025. All resulting digital datasets and Vendor reports will be published on the AGS website.