Comparison of methods to evaluate overland travel times for source water protection

Abstract

Protection areas are commonly delineated in water supply watersheds to manage anthropogenic activities that pose pollution risks. These areas are frequently determined based on geographical distances that are not representative of the travel time of water. For surface waters, the total travel time for water between an anthropogenic activity and the drinking water intake is the sum of the overland travel time and the travel time in a river. In previous research, we reported methods for evaluating travel time in a river. The present paper focuses on the estimation of overland travel times. Four methods were applied, evaluated and compared based on a land use database representing anthropogenic activities that potentially release contaminants. Methods for overland travel times that provided more precise results required abundant data and expertise to be implemented, but can contribute to improved decision-making for land use planning in the context of source water protection.

Keywords:

• drinking water
• land use
• source water protection
• travel time
• watershed

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Ville de Québec and Ariane Marais for providing data for the anthropogenic activities representing risks.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

Ms. Françoise Tardif and Ms. Flavie St-Pierre were both beneficiaries of a scholarship from the «Mr. Jose Llamas and Ms. Constance Gravel testamentary legacy» to Université Laval’s Foundation. Ms. Françoise Tardif also received a scholarship from Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada’s (NSERC) FONCER-TEDGIEER (Technologies Environnementales de Décontamination et Gestion Intégrée des Eaux et Effluents Résiduaires) program. This study was part of the research program of the NSERC Drinking Water Chair of Université Laval (Canada).