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Generally, groundwater is naturally of good quality for human consumption and represents an essential source of drinking water. In Canada, small municipalities and individuals are particularly reliant on groundwater, since they cannot afford complex water treatment installations. However, groundwater is a vulnerable resource that, depending on its characteristics, can be contaminated by almost any land use. In recent decades, governments have launched programs to acquire more information on groundwater, in order to better protect it. Nevertheless, the data produced are rarely adequate to be understood and used by land planners. The aim of this study was to develop a method that helps planners interpret hydrogeological data in the Province of Quebec, Canada. Based on the requests and needs of planners during semi-directed interviews, a methodology was developed to qualitatively evaluate groundwater contamination risk by land uses. The method combines land planning data and hydrogeological data through the MACBETH multicriteria analysis method, to obtain maps of groundwater contamination risk. The method was developed through group and individual meetings with numerous hydrogeology, land planning, water's economics and drinking water specialists. The resulting maps allow planners to understand the dynamics of groundwater within their territory, identify problem areas where groundwater is threatened and analyse the potential impact of planning scenarios on the risk of groundwater contamination.

Groundwater is widely used as a source of drinking water in North America. However, it can be contaminated by microbial or chemical agents potentially hazardous to human health. In recent decades, governments have developed better knowledge of groundwater and established measures to protect and preserve the resource. Several studies have shown that relevant information on groundwater might prove very useful for regional planning purposes. However, there is little information on how groundwater information contributes to decision making in urban and regional planning in Canada and the United States. The objective of this study is to explore the level of use of groundwater information for land use planning purposes in Canada and the United States and to identify the factors that may explain why some provinces or states are more proactive than others when it comes to using such data for groundwater protection purposes. This paper presents the results of a survey sent across North America to groundwater information producers. The resulting data from the survey were examined using descriptive analyses and multiple correspondence analysis, and illustrate how groundwater data can be integrated into land planning.