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Research
Areas
Reactive Contaminant Fate and Transport
Profs. Thomson, Craig, and Sykes use models
and uncertainty analysis to predict and understand
the behaviour of reactive contaminants in the
subsurface. These complex reactive transport
models can be used to design subsurface
remediation measures, understand the pathways of
nutrient transfer from field to river, and
estimate the impact of biodegradation on aquifer
contamination.
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Distributed Surface Water Modelling
Profs. Soulis, Burn, Tolson, and Craig
attempt to simulate and understand the complex
hydrological processes that control the exchange
of water between land and atmosphere, vegetation
and soil. Both numerical and statistical surface
water models may be used to assess the
impacts of flooding, investigate the nature of
climate change, and to improve weather
forecasting.
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Climate Change Prediction
Profs. Burn and Sykes examine the potential
impacts of climate change on groundwater and
surface water resources in Canada using
sophisticated physical and statistical models.
Part of this investigation includes looking back
in time to what happened thousands of years ago as
an indicator of what is to come.
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 Calibration and Parameter Estimation
Profs. Tolson and Sykes investigate the
effectiveness of methods for estimating unknown
parameters in environmental models, a key
component of their success in prediction.
Prof. Tolson and his students focus on the
development of new heuristic optimization and
sensitivity analysis approaches. These methods
collectively improve the science of simulation
modelling as a whole, and can lead to better, more
informed decisions by water resources
policymakers.
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 Regional Groundwater Flow and
Transport Modelling
Profs. Craig, Thomson, and Sykes are
actively investigating the behavior of regional
scale aquifer systems at long time scales. Prof.
Craig and students have been developing new
semi-analytical methods for simulating complex
multi-layer aquifer systems. Prof. Sykes and
Thomson have focused on application of regional
flow models for investigation of nuclear waste
disposal, climate change, glacial history, and
agricultural impact on water resources. These
models are necessary in a world where hydrologic
connections can travel a great distance, and
policy must be executed taking all scales -local
and regional- into effect.
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 Sediment Transport and River
Mechanics
Prof. Annable's research interests include
the modelling of sediment transport and the
hydrodynamics of pre- and post-rehabilitated
rivers. A better understanding of sediment
transport leads to better measures for river
rehabilitation, ensuring that riverine ecosystems
can survive despite human impacts on the
landscape.
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