Occurrence and origin of methane in groundwater in Alberta (Canada): Gas geochemical and isotopic approaches

Abstract

To assess potential future impacts on shallow aquifers by leakage of natural gas from unconventional energy resource development it is essential to establish a reliable baseline. Occurrence of methane in shallow groundwater in Alberta between 2006 and 2014 was assessed and was ubiquitous in 186 sampled monitoring wells. Free and dissolved gas sampling and measurement approaches yielded comparable results with low methane concentrations in shallow groundwater, but in 28 samples from 21 wells methane exceeded 10mg/L in dissolved gas and 300,000 ppmv in free gas. Methane concentrations in free and dissolved gas samples were found to increase with well depth and were especially elevated in groundwater obtained from aquifers containing coal seams and shale units. Carbon isotope ratios of methane averaged -69.7 ± 11.1‰ (n=63) in free gas and -65.6 ± 8.9‰ (n=26) in dissolved gas. δ(13)C values were not found to vary with well depth or lithology indicating that methane in Alberta groundwater was derived from a similar source. The low δ(13)C values in concert with average δ(2)HCH4 values of -289 ± 44‰ (n=45) suggest that most methane was of biogenic origin predominantly generated via CO2 reduction. This interpretation is confirmed by dryness parameters typically >500 due to only small amounts of ethane and a lack of propane in most samples. Comparison with mud gas profile carbon isotope data revealed that methane in the investigated shallow groundwater in Alberta is isotopically similar to hydrocarbon gases found in 100-250 meter depths in the WCSB and is currently not sourced from thermogenic hydrocarbon occurrences in deeper portions of the basin. The chemical and isotopic data for methane gas samples obtained from Alberta groundwater provide an excellent baseline against which potential future impact of deeper stray gases on shallow aquifers can be assessed.