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Background databases

Last updated on December 12, 2023

Background concentration databases

The ministry provides regional background levels of metals in soil and groundwater to assist people conducting remediation at sites where local background concentrations are above numerical soil or water quality standards.

Concentrations that occur naturally in a geographic area are considered local background concentrations.

Background concentrations in soil database

The ministry has compiled background concentrations in soil for select metals from all its former 8 administrative regions:

  • Cariboo
  • Kootenay
  • Lower Mainland
  • Omineca-Peace
  • Skeena
  • Southern Interior
  • Vancouver Island
  • Vancouver

The ministry has also completed background sampling in the Metro Vancouver area due to the higher redevelopment rate of commercial and industrial properties in that region.

This data has been used to:

More information on how these estimates of background concentrations in soil may be used can be found in Protocol 4: Establishing Local Background Concentrations in Soil (PDF, 565KB).

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Available data

The ministry’s preferred method for deriving background metal concentrations in soil is through Strong Acid Leachable Metals (SALM) digestion. Soil samples previously analyzed by alternate methods were reanalyzed using SALM.  

The following additional data is available from the ministry upon request: 

  • Detailed information on background sampling site locations and soil description organized by region
  • Analytical results for metals
  • Analytical results for miscellaneous parameters
    • For example:
      • Particle size and distribution
      • Organic content
      • pH
      • Conductance
      • Chloride
      • Fluoride
      • Phosphate
      • Sulphate
      • Organic carbon
      • Nitrates
      • Nitrogen
  • Analytical results for organic analytes of pesticides, herbicides, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and chlorinated phenols 

The analytical data for background concentrations in soil is compiled in the following Excel spreadsheet: 

 

Background concentrations in groundwater database

The ministry has developed a database that may be used to determine background groundwater quality at sites undergoing investigation and remediation.

The background groundwater database contains naturally occurring concentrations of 27 inorganic substances at individual site locations across the province.

This data has been used to calculate regional background concentrations of substances in groundwater for 3 regions:

  • Lower Mainland (2 sub-regions)
  • South Vancouver Island
  • Thompson Okanagan

Data from the Northeast and Prince George regions was also collected, but was insufficient to calculate regional background concentrations.

More information on how background concentrations in groundwater may be used can be found in Protocol 9: Determining Local Background Groundwater Quality (Revised) (PDF, 400KB).

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Available data 

The regional background concentrations of substances in groundwater were collected from a variety of sources including academic studies and technical reports.

Local background concentrations were calculated for the 3 regions, as well as individual sites. The analytical data used to calculate an individual site’s local background concentration can also be viewed on the iMapBC website.

This data is what constitutes the background groundwater database. A full description of how the regional data was collected is available in the report entitled 'Establishing Regional Background Concentrations in British Columbia,' available upon request to the ministry.

The ministry’s background concentrations in groundwater database contains the following:

  • Information on background site locations for:
    • All 4 regions/sub-regions assessed
    • The mapped unit
    • The geologic unit in which the monitoring well screen is installed
    • The screened interval depth
  • Analytical results for listed inorganic compounds for each site

The analytical data for background concentrations in groundwater is compiled in the following document:

To use the background groundwater database, choose the individual site of interest for a region from the summary sheet to access the analytic data for that site. 

Regional boundaries, regional background concentrations and individual site background concentrations can be viewed at the iMapBC website using the following instructions:

  1. Launch iMapBC
  2. Select 'Data Sources'
  3. Select 'Add Provincial Layers'
  4. Scroll down to the 'Waste' tab and select it
  5. Choose the appropriate boxes to view:
    • Individual background sample sites concentration data
    • Regional concentration areas for the regional background concentrations
  6. Select 'Identify,' then select the region or individual site to view the background concentration data

Detailed information on sites and analytical results for miscellaneous and inorganic parameters is available from the ministry upon request.

 

The information on this web page does not replace the legislative requirements in the EMA or its regulations and it does not list all provisions for contaminated site services.

If there are differences between this information and the Act, Regulation, or Protocols, the Act, Regulation, and Protocols apply.