The firm

Project Portfolio

Representative work in Alberta and British Columbia, described by setting and method rather than by client.

Six engagements that show the range of the practice. Each is described by its setting, the approach taken, and what was delivered. Clients are not named and no project is identified by a legal land description; references are available on request.

  1. Borrow pit water balance program

    Water balance assessments for borrow excavations at well pads, compressor sites, and access roads, carried out on an annual and monthly cycle since 2023. Each excavation is assessed for the water it intercepts, stores, and releases, and the result supports the operator's authorization to excavate under the Water Act.

    Setting
    Upstream oil and gas developments in the Peace region of northwest Alberta and in west-central Alberta. More than thirty sites assessed to date.
    Approach
    The Modified Monthly Water Balance is applied to each excavation polygon. Terrain analysis from LiDAR establishes the catchment draining to the pit, and spatial climate analysis sets precipitation, evaporation, and snowmelt for the location. Assessments are reissued as pit configurations change and as annual reporting falls due.
    Deliverables
    Water balance report for each site · borrow pit design sketches · calculation sheets · figures and site plans · responses to regulator information requests

  2. Aggregate geology and pit volume analysis

    Granular deposits assessed at borrow and gravel sources in northern Alberta — where the material sits, how much of it is recoverable, and what the ground and water conditions mean for working it. Surficial geology and terrain mapping bound the deposit, and the bounded deposit is carried through to a volume.

    Setting
    Borrow and aggregate sources in northern Alberta, serving upstream developments and the resource road network that reaches them.
    Approach
    Terrain analysis from LiDAR reads the surficial landforms that host granular deposits and narrows the ground worth testing. Ground-penetrating radar then traces the deposit between test locations — the base of the granular unit, the depth to till or bedrock, and the water table where it falls within range. Electromagnetic terrain conductivity and electrical resistivity carry the section where clay content or depth attenuates the radar signal, and seismic refraction is used where depth to bedrock and rippability govern the pit design. Test pit and borehole logs calibrate the geophysical sections, and volumes are computed between the surveyed surface and the design pit floor. Where the floor sits below the water table, spatial climate analysis and the Modified Monthly Water Balance establish the conditions a working pit will meet.
    Deliverables
    Surficial geology and terrain mapping · geophysical survey lines and interpreted sections · deposit delineation · pit volume and stripping estimates · test pit and borehole logs · granular resource assessment report · cross-sections and figures

  3. Watercourse crossing hydrology and scour assessment

    A program of crossings on a linear infrastructure corridor, assessed in successive tranches. Each crossing was characterized for its contributing catchment and design flows, then evaluated for scour and erosion against the provincial code of practice.

    Setting
    Linear infrastructure corridor in Alberta, crossing watercourses of a range of sizes across several watersheds.
    Approach
    Catchments were delineated by terrain analysis from LiDAR and design rainfall set by spatial climate analysis. Hydrological modelling on HEC-HMS produced the design hydrographs, and each structure was evaluated for the depths, velocities, and scour it has to pass. Assessment followed the Code of Practice for Watercourse Crossings.
    Deliverables
    Table of watercourses · crossing assessment reports · design flow and scour calculations · hydrology figures

  4. Pad, access road, and pipeline drainage in wetland terrain

    Hydrotechnical work on a well pad, its access road, and the connecting pipeline, carried out as a subcontract to the prime engineering consultant. Crossing structures and grading were assessed against the drainage the surrounding wetland terrain delivers.

    Setting
    Wetland terrain in northeast British Columbia, under BC Energy Regulator permits. Subcontract to a multidisciplinary engineering firm acting as prime consultant.
    Approach
    Contributing catchments and overland flow paths were resolved by terrain analysis and checked against the survey and grading plans. Spatial climate analysis and hydrological modelling set the design flows, and culvert sizing was carried through to the depths and velocities each crossing has to pass.
    Deliverables
    Culvert sizing and crossing recommendations · drainage assessment · figures issued against the construction and grading plans

  5. Wetland assessment for well sites and a highway grading project

    Wetland extents and hydrological function assessed at well pads and compressor sites, and along a section of provincial highway undergoing grading, to establish what the works would affect and what approvals they would require.

    Setting
    Northern Alberta. Work for upstream operators and for a transportation engineering consultancy acting as prime.
    Approach
    Assessment followed the Alberta Wetland Mapping Standards. Terrain analysis from LiDAR resolved the depressions, flow paths, and contributing areas that sustain each wetland, read against provincial hydrography and imagery. Ground-penetrating radar profiled peat thickness and the basal contact beneath the organic wetlands, and electromagnetic terrain conductivity mapped the lateral extent of saturated ground between profile lines, giving wetland extent and depth from subsurface measurement. Electrical resistivity was used where a confining layer or the position of the water table governed the assessment.
    Deliverables
    Wetland assessment reports · mapped wetland extents · peat thickness and basal contact profiles · geophysical survey lines · supporting figures

  6. Overland flow and site drainage characterization

    Catchment boundaries and overland flow paths delineated across a development site and issued as spatial data, so that grading and drainage design proceeded from the terrain as surveyed.

    Setting
    Development site in Alberta, in support of a design team working to a fixed grading concept.
    Approach
    Terrain analysis from LiDAR delineated the catchments draining to and across the site and traced the overland flow paths between them. Results were issued in the coordinate system and file formats the design team works in.
    Deliverables
    Catchment and overland flow path spatial data · hydrology figure · summary of contributing areas

Work is carried out under the firm's Permits to Practice and carries the professional responsibility of the geoscientist of record. The standards and technical references behind these methods are set out in References, the terms in Lexicon, and the services behind this work in Services and Sectors. Client references are available on request. Enquiries are welcome.