Abstract: This map displays an assessment of groundwater quality risk for the agricultural area of Alberta. Agricultural activities that may have an impact on groundwater quality include livestock, crop production and agrochemical use. These activities along with the physical characteristics represented by aquifer vulnerability and available moisture were combined to produce this map. The classes shown on the map were ranked from 0 (lowest risk) to 1 (highest risk). This resource was created in 2005 using ArcGIS.
Metadata:
File identifier:
537CDA97-718B-4530-B0F3-0D7571E149D4
Language:
Language Code:
eng
Character set:
Character set code:
utf8
Hierarchy level:
Scope code:
dataset
Metadata author:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
Agriculture and Irrigation, Government of Alberta
Position name:
Environmental Stewardship Branch, GIS Unit
Contact info:
Contact:
Phone:
Telephone:
Voice:
403-742-7901
Address:
Address:
Delivery point:
7000 – 113 St
City:
Edmonton
Administrative area:
Alberta
Postal code:
T6H 5T6
Country:
Country:
CA
Electronic mail address:
310FARM@gov.ab.ca
Hours of service:
08:00-17:00 Monday to Friday except for statutory holidays
Contact instructions:
Questions regarding the metadata for this data set submitted through electronic mail must include the
salutation “Attention: Geographic Information Systems Lead
(currently David Spiess, david.spiess@gov.ab.ca or in his absence: David Hildebrand,
david.hildebrand@gov.ab.ca; or Karen Raven, karen.raven@gov.ab.ca) – Ground Water Quality Risk”
Role:
Role code:
publisher
Date stamp:
2020-03-10
Metadata standard name:
NAP - Metadata
Metadata standard version:
1.2
Dataset URI:
https://open.alberta.ca/publications/agricultural-land-resource-atlas-of-alberta-2nd-edition
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Reference system:
Reference system identifier:
RS Identifier:
Authority:
Citation:
Title:
EPSG Geodetic Parameter Registry
Date:
Date:
Date:
2016-07-13
Date type:
Date type code:
publication
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
OGP Geomatics Committee
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
custodian
Code:
3400
Code Space:
EPSG
Version:
8.9.3
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Data identification:
Citation:
Citation:
Title:
Ground Water Quality Risk
Date:
Date:
Date:
2005-09-01
Date type:
Date type code:
publication
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
Agriculture and Irrigation, Government of Alberta
Position name:
Environmental Stewardship Branch, GIS Unit
Contact info:
Contact:
Phone:
Telephone:
Voice:
403-742-7901
Address:
Address:
Delivery point:
7000 – 113 St
City:
Edmonton
Administrative area:
Alberta
Postal code:
T6H 5T6
Country:
Country:
CA
Electronic mail address:
310FARM@gov.ab.ca
Hours of service:
08:00-17:00 Monday to Friday except for statutory holidays
Contact instructions:
Queries about the creation and/or characteristics of the data set submitted through electronic
mail must include the salutation "Attention: Geographic Information Systems Lead (currently
David Spiess, david.spiess@gov.ab.ca or in his absence: David Hildebrand,
david.hildebrand@gov.ab.ca; or Karen Raven, karen.raven@gov.ab.ca) – Ground Water Quality Risk”
Role:
Role code:
originator
Presentation form:
Presentation form code:
tableDigital
Abstract:
This map displays an assessment of groundwater quality risk for the agricultural area of Alberta. Agricultural
activities that may have an impact on groundwater quality include livestock, crop production and
agrochemical use. These activities along with the physical characteristics represented by aquifer
vulnerability and available moisture were combined to produce this map. The classes shown on the map were
ranked from 0 (lowest risk) to 1 (highest risk). This resource was created in 2005 using ArcGIS.
Purpose:
Provides users with raster format representation of ground water quality risk, as agricultural activities
include livestock, crop production and agrochemical use may have an impact on groundwater quality. The data
is suitable for indexing and analysis purposes.
Status:
Progress code:
completed
Resource maintenance:
Maintenance information:
Maintenance and update frequency:
Maintenance frequency code:
asNeeded
Descriptive keywords:
Keywords:
Keyword:
Alberta
Type:
Keyword type code:
place
Descriptive keywords:
Keywords:
Keyword:
water resources
Keyword:
water quality
Keyword:
subsurface water
Keyword:
phreatic water
Keyword:
water contamination
Type:
Keyword type code:
theme
Thesaurus name:
Citation:
Title:
Agrovoc
Date:
Date:
Date:
2016-01-21
Date type:
Date type code:
revision
Cited responsible party:
missing
Descriptive keywords:
Keywords:
Keyword:
Downloadable Data
Thesaurus name: uuidref: 723f6998-058e-11dc-8314-0800200c9a66
Resource constraints:
Legal constraints:
Use constraints:
Restriction code:
license
Other constraints:
Your use of this information will be governed by the terms of the Open Government Licence - Alberta, in
force as of the date you accessed the information , found at http://open.alberta.ca/licence
Resource constraints:
Legal constraints:
Access constraints:
Restriction code:
otherRestrictions
Other constraints:
To access the data you must agree to the terms of the Open Government Licence - Alberta found at
http://open.alberta.ca/licence
Resource constraints:
Legal constraints:
Use limitation:
Distribution Liability: Under the terms of the Open Government Licence - Alberta, the Information is
licensed as is, and the Information Provider excludes all representations, warranties, obligations, and
liabilities, whether express or implied, to the maximum extent permitted by law. The Information
Provider is not liable for any errors or omissions in the Information, and will not under any
circumstances be liable for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, consequential, or other loss,
injury or damage caused by its use or otherwise arising in connection with this licence or the
Information, even if specifically advised of the possibility of such loss, injury or damage.
Resource constraints:
Security constraints:
Classification:
Classification code:
unclassified
User note:
UNRESTRICTED under Government of Alberta Security Classification System
Classification system:
Government of Alberta Security Classification System
Handling description:
https://imtpolicy.sp.alberta.ca/standards/Pages/Data-and-Information-Security-Classification.aspx
Aggregation Info:
AggregateInformation:
Aggregate Data Set Name:
Citation:
Title:
A National Ecological Framework for Canada
Date:
Date:
Date:
1995-01-01
Date type:
Date type code:
publication
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Individual name:
Ecological Stratification Working Group
Organisation name:
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Position name:
Research Branch, Centre for Land and Biological Resources Research
Contact info:
Contact:
Address:
Address:
City:
Ottawa
Administrative area:
Ontario
Role:
Role code:
originator
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Individual name:
Ecological Stratification Working Group.
Organisation name:
Environment Canada
Position name:
State of the Environment Directorate, Ecozone Analysis Branch
Contact info:
Contact:
Address:
Address:
City:
Hull
Administrative area:
Ontario
Role:
Role code:
originator
Other citation details:
Report and national map at 1:7 500 000 scale.
Association Type:
Association type code:
crossReference
Aggregation Info:
AggregateInformation:
Aggregate Data Set Name:
Citation:
Title:
Land Disposal of Manure in Province of Quebec
Date:
Date:
Date:
1984-02-01
Date type:
Date type code:
publication
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Individual name:
Culley, J.B. and Barnett, G.M.
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
author
Series:
Series:
Name:
Canadian Journal of Soil Science
Issue identification:
64(1)
Page:
75-86
Association Type:
Association type code:
crossReference
Aggregation Info:
AggregateInformation:
Aggregate Data Set Name:
Citation:
Title:
Watershed Selection for the AESA Stream Water Quality Monitoring Program
Date:
Date:
Date:
1999-01-01
Date type:
Date type code:
publication
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Individual name:
Anne-Marie Anderson
Organisation name:
Alberta Environment
Position name:
Water Sciences Branch
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
author
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Individual name:
Sandra E. Cooke and Neil MacAlpine
Organisation name:
Alberta Agriculture
Position name:
Food and Rural Development
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
author
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
Alberta Environmentally Sustainable Agriculture
Position name:
Resource Monitoring and Water Quality
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
publisher
Association Type:
Association type code:
crossReference
Aggregation Info:
AggregateInformation:
Aggregate Data Set Name:
Citation:
Title:
Agricultural Intensity in Alberta, 1996 and Changes Since 1991
Date:
Date:
Date:
1998-01-01
Date type:
Date type code:
publication
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Individual name:
Johnson, I. and Kirtz, J
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
author
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
Alberta Environmentally Sustainable Agriculture
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
publisher
Association Type:
Association type code:
crossReference
Aggregation Info:
AggregateInformation:
Aggregate Data Set Name:
Citation:
Title:
Draft Approach to the Preparation of Groundwater Vulnerability Maps for the Oldman Basin Water Quality
Initiative
Date:
Date:
Date:
1999-01-01
Date type:
Date type code:
publication
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Individual name:
Dash, T. and Rodvang, J.
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
author
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (PFRA) and Alberta Agriculture and Food(AF)
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
publisher
Association Type:
Association type code:
crossReference
Aggregation Info:
AggregateInformation:
Aggregate Data Set Name:
Citation:
Title:
Groundwater Vulnerability Map of Northern Alberta
Date:
Date:
Date:
2003-01-01
Date type:
Date type code:
creation
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration(PFRA)
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
originator
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Individual name:
Cowen, T. and Dash, T.
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
author
Association Type:
Association type code:
crossReference
Spatial representation type:
Spatial representation type code:
grid
Spatial resolution:
Resolution:
Equivalent scale:
Representative fraction:
Denominator:
3000000
Language:
Language Code:
eng
Character set:
Character set code:
utf8
Topic category:
Topic category code:
environment
Topic category:
Topic category code:
inlandWaters
Environment description:
Microsoft Windows 7 Version 6.1 (Build 7601) Service Pack 1; Esri ArcGIS 10.3.1.4959
Extent:
Extent:
Geographic element:
Geographic bounding box:
Extent type code:
true
West bound longitude:
-120.50134
East bound longitude:
-109.50517
South bound latitude:
47.601134
North bound latitude:
61.39605
Temporal element:
Temporal extent:
Extent:
Time period:
Begin date:
2005-01-01T00:00:00
End date:
2005-01-01T00:00:00
Extent:
Extent:
Geographic element:
Geographic bounding box:
Extent type code:
true
West bound longitude:
-120.902378
East bound longitude:
-108.461627
South bound latitude:
48.895441
North bound latitude:
60.097731
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Distribution:
Distribution format:
Format:
Name:
SDE Raster Dataset
Version:
10.3.1
Distribution format:
Format:
Name:
FGDB
Version:
ArcGIS 10.3.1
Distributor:
Distributor:
Distributor contact:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
Agriculture and Irrigation, Government of Alberta
Position name:
Environmental Stewardship Branch, GIS Unit
Contact info:
Contact:
Phone:
Telephone:
Voice:
403-742-7901
Address:
Address:
Delivery point:
7000 – 113 St
City:
Edmonton
Administrative area:
Alberta
Postal code:
T6H 5T6
Country:
Country:
CA
Electronic mail address:
310FARM@gov.ab.ca
Hours of service:
08:00-17:00 Monday to Friday except for statutory holidays
Contact instructions:
Queries about the distribution of the data set may be addressed to Geographic Information Systems
Lead (currently David Spiess, david.spiess@gov.ab.ca or in his absence: David Hildebrand,
david.hildebrand@gov.ab.ca; or Karen Raven, karen.raven@gov.ab.ca
Role:
Role code:
distributor
Distribution Order Process:
Standard order process:
Ordering instructions:
A PDF of the map can be downloaded from Agriculture and Irrigation website at
https://open.alberta.ca/publications/agricultural-land-resource-atlas-of-alberta-2nd-edition
There are also KML and SHP files available for download through the online transfer options listed.
Transfer options:
Digital transfer options:
Online:
Online Resource:
Linkage:
URL:
https://geospatial.alberta.ca/titan/rest/services/agriculture/Agricultural_Land_Resource_Atlas/MapServer/
Protocol:
HTTPS
Name:
REST
Online:
Online Resource:
Linkage:
URL:
https://geospatial.alberta.ca/titan/services/agriculture/agricultural_land_resource_atlas/MapServer/WMSServer
Protocol:
HTTPS
Name:
WMS
Online:
Online Resource:
Linkage:
URL:
https://extranet.gov.ab.ca/srd/geodiscover/srd_pub/AG_FOR/LandResourceAtlas/Ground_Water_Quality_Risk.zip
Protocol:
FTP
Name:
Contains TIF and KMZ for Ground Water Quality Risk dataset
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Data quality:
Scope:
Scope:
Hierarchy level:
Scope code:
dataset
Lineage:
Lineage:
Statement:
To assess groundwater quality risk, the aquifer vulnerability, aridity and agricultural intensity were
specifically considered.
Process step:
Process step:
Description:
Soil Landscapes of Canada (SLC) Version 1.9 was used for this map. SLC polygons were created using
existing soil survey information. Each polygon is described by a standard set of soil and land
attributes that characterizes the soil landscapes found in each SLCpolygon. Soils, landscapes and
climate are the key natural resource factors that determine agricultural productivity, and the farms
within a soil landscape unit usually have similar production characteristics.
Physical vulnerability of aquifers varies from location to location in Alberta and is represented by
the Aquifer Vulnerability Index (AVI) prepared by Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (PFRA)
and Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development (AAFRD) (Dash and Rodvang, 1999 and Cowen and
Dash, 2003). The AVI ranks aquifer vulnerability in four classes, based on surficial geology and
depth to aquifer. Aquifers in areas with a higher mean annual precipitation minus potential
evapo-transpiration (P-PE) value are considered to be more susceptible to contaminants through
leaching to the groundwater. P-PE values were obtained from the National Ecological Framework for
Canada ecodistrict climate files. Aquifer vulnerability classes were combined with P-PE ratings to
create the groundwater physical sensitivity factor.
The components used in the Agricultural Intensity Index (AII) were each derived in different ways from
the 2001 Census of Agriculture data. Manure production was calculated from Census data collected
about the numbers of all livestock raised in the province. Using research by Culley and Barnett
(1984), Statistics Canada calculated the amount of manure produced by the total number of livestock.
A formula that weighted the different livestock based on animal size and average manure output was
used. The numbers of each type of livestock reported in the Census, multiplied by its manure factor,
were totalled to give the total manure produced in tonnes.
The AII was developed through the AESA Water Quality Monitoring Program and work done by Johnson and
Kirtz (1998) and by Anderson, Cooke and MacAlpine (1999). The AII is the relative ranking of the sum
of the rankings of watersheds by each of manure production, fertilizer use and agrochemical use, per
unit area, based on 2001 Census of Agriculture data. For this process, SLC polygons, and not
watersheds, were used to integrate agricultural inputs. Calculation and custom processing of the
Census data by Statistics Canada yielded manure production (tonnes), fertilizer expense ($) and
agrochemical expense ($) for each SLC polygon.
These values divided by the SLC polygon area (square km) resulted in a ratio per unit area for each of
manure, fertilizer and agrochemicals, which were totalled to give the AII rating. The AII rating was
multiplied by the groundwater physical sensitivity
factor described previously, and the resultant values were ranked from 0 to 1, to give the groundwater
quality risk factor as displayed on the map for each SLC polygon.
Date and time:
2005-01-01T00:00:00
Source:
Source:
Description:
A series of GIS coverages that show the major characteristics of soil and land for Canada.
Source citation:
Citation:
Title:
Soil Landscapes of Canada
Date:
Date:
Date:
1991-01-01
Date type:
Date type code:
publication
Cited responsible party:
missing
Source:
Source:
Description:
Census of Agriculture data related to manure production, fertilizer use and agrochemical use, per unit
area.
Source citation:
Citation:
Title:
2001 Census of Agriculture
Date:
Date:
Date:
2014-03-24
Date type:
Date type code:
revision
Cited responsible party:
missing
Source:
Source:
Description:
Ranks aquifer vulnerability in four classes, based on surficial geology and depth to aquifer.
Source citation:
Citation:
Title:
Aquifer Vulnerability Index (AVI)
Date:
Date:
Date:
2003-01-01
Date type:
Date type code:
publication
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (PFRA) and Alberta Agriculture and Food (AF)
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
author
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Maintenance information:
Maintenance and update frequency:
Maintenance frequency code:
notPlanned
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