A new scientific groundwater assessment by Living Lakes Canada has found that most high-risk aquifers in the Columbia Basin are not being monitored, creating significant gaps in long-term water security planning.
The assessment, summarized in Living Lakes Canada’s most recent Watershed Bulletin, examines aquifers across the region. Aquifers are layers of rock, gravel and sand that store and supply drinking and irrigation water for many rural homes, farms and businesses.
The data show that 80 per cent of aquifers identified as high priority for surveillance—based on factors such as water demand, proximity to communities and agricultural use—are not currently being monitored.
Numerous at-risk aquifer hotspots were identified as essential to community water supplies and agricultural needs, including the Baynes Lake area, Sparwood, Fernie and areas southwest of Golden. The only high-risk groundwater hotspot currently being monitored is near Creston, where Living Lakes Canada and the B.C. government conduct oversight.
“For years, we’ve voiced concerns about groundwater uncertainty in our community, and to have that validated by a formal scientific assessment is incredibly powerful. This report shows the desperate need for the sustained monitoring we’ve been advocating for, and a path toward protecting our water for future generations.” said Stan Doehle, Area B Director of the Regional District of East Kootenay and resident of the Baynes Lake area.
Groundwater monitoring is necessary to detect declining well levels and drought risks, helping communities make informed water-use decisions.
Living Lakes Canada is working with 32 well owners to track changing groundwater levels through its Columbia Basin Groundwater Monitoring Program. The program is calling for expanded monitoring in hotspot areas, adding to the eight wells monitored by the Provincial Groundwater Observation Well Network to protect freshwater now and in the future.
“By strategically expanding monitoring in those hotspot areas, we can support more informed, data-driven decisions that ensure safe and equitable access to freshwater.” said Arlo Bryn-Thorn, Program Manager with Living Lakes Canada.
Based in the Columbia Basin, Living Lakes Canada is a national non-profit organization working towards the long-term protection of Canada’s freshwater.
Living Lakes Canada extends thanks to those who support their work through funding such as FortisBC, the Columbia Basin Trust, the Investment Agriculture Foundation of BC, the Government of BC, and the Royal Bank of Canada.
To read the Living Lakes Canada complete watershed bulletin head to https://livinglakescanada.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/watershed-bulletin-no.5.pdf
And for more information about Living Lakes Canada groundwater monitoring work, check out https://livinglakescanada.ca/project/columbia-basin-groundwater-monitoring-program/
