White Papers & Publications
Twenty years of published research on locating groundwater movement without drilling. Every document below is free to download, no form required.
Full technical overviews of how each method works and where it applies.
Characterizing subsurface groundwater movement
Groundwater migrates preferentially through zones of highest hydraulic conductivity: fractures, fault planes, permeable formations and construction defects that surface observation cannot see. This paper sets out how a Willowstick survey resolves those pathways.
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Finding water in fractured rock
Groundwater in bedrock and fractured settings moves through sub-vertical fracture networks, fault planes, permeable gravel bodies and extensional weaknesses. This paper covers how Microseismic Resonance is used to locate them.
Download PDFPapers authored or co-authored on Willowstick methods, presented through the SEG, SAGEEP, IMWA and the Stanford Geothermal Workshop.
Controlled source audio frequency domain magnetics
A peer-reviewed treatment of both the theoretical basis and the field practice of minimally invasive groundwater mapping, applied to seepage detection in earthen embankments.
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Mine water and circular economy
A conference paper on mapping the preferential pathways carrying seepage from tailings storage facilities, without drilling into a live facility.
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Delineating affected groundwater and its pathways
Addresses the central difficulty in groundwater contamination work: building an accurate picture of where affected water actually sits and the routes it follows.
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Quickly and accurately, without drilling or drawing down
A conference paper on characterizing seepage through a dam while the structure stays in service, with no boreholes and no reservoir drawdown.
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Near-surface geophysics special section
A survey of less common applications of the method across differing site conditions and project types.
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A minimally invasive procedure
Presented at Stanford's geothermal reservoir engineering workshop, covering how fluid pathways at depth are located before committing to high-cost drilling.
Download PDFProject reports available as downloads. Our featured investigations have full write-ups on the case studies page.
Seepage of unknown origin at the downstream abutment
Seepage appeared along the downstream abutment of this dam on the Elands River and the cause was unknown. The survey was used to locate a seepage path that had proven difficult to find.
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Identifying, mapping and modelling seepage around a dam
A geophysical investigation to identify, map and model the preferential seepage moving around the dam structure.
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Preferential flow paths in mine waste rock dumps
Contaminated seepage entering and leaving tailings impoundments is a persistent problem for mine owners. This survey traced the preferential flow paths through waste rock dumps without invasive drilling.
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A new drill target that outperformed the existing well
A groundwater targeting study across a 3.7 acre property. Geophysics cannot guarantee production, but it narrowed the drilling decision to a target that outperformed the existing well.
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Locating drill targets in fractured rock
A well siting study in fractured rock, locating the structures most likely to carry productive groundwater before committing to a borehole.
Download PDFOur featured investigations have full case study pages with survey imagery and outcomes.