University of New Brunswick

The university provides a number of very strong experienced researchers to the project team in the areas of geology and groundwater quality and tracers, with specific experience in both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Several of the researchers also bring specialized equipment to the table.

Kerry MacQuarrie

Kerry MacQuarrie has expertise in hydrogeology and groundwater modeling and is currently a Professor of Civil Engineering at UNB and a Science Director with the Canadian Rivers Institute. He has recently conducted research on saltwater intrusion into coastal aquifers, agricultural nitrate contamination, and baseline water quality surveys for domestic water wells. He was a member of the Council of Canadian Academies’ expert committee that produced the 2009 report on the Sustainable Management of Groundwater in Canada.

Dave Keighly

Dave Keighley, Ph.D., P.Geo. has worked on the service side of the petroleum industry in the United Kingdom and as a petroleum geologist for the Province of New Brunswick (Department of Natural Resources).  His research has included sedimentological, petrophysical, and structural studies of Carboniferous strata (including petroleum source and reservoir rocks, coal-bearing intervals) of SE New Brunswick and Cape Breton, NS.

Karl Butler

Karl Butler, Ph.D., P.Geo., P.Eng. has expertise in engineering and exploration geophysics. He began his professional career in oil and gas exploration with Chevron Canada Resources. His research focuses on applications of geophysics to infer the movement of water and solutes through porous and fractured media. 

Michelle Gray

Michelle Gray, Ph.D. has 20 years of freshwater monitoring and assessment-related work and research experience (lab and field). She is Science Director with the Canadian Rivers Institute (CRI) and has designed and conducted aquatic assessment research related to diamond and gold mines, pulp mills, and agriculture, and more recently, shale gas development.