Conversion of Lithological Data in the Manitoba Water Well Database (GWDrill) to a Mappable Format

A project designed to gain access to all usable data to aid construction of 3D geological models for southern Manitoba has included signifi cant effort to appropriately utilize lithological data of variable quality in the Provincial water well database known as “GWDrill”. In order to use the data, it was necessary fi rst to assign x, y, and z coordinates to each site on the basis of the existing designation, usually a quarter section (one-half mile by one-half mile) or river lot location. Secondly, it was necessary to convert the lithological data to a classifi cation and terminology that could be queried and mapped. The lithological data were converted by correcting spelling, obtaining an inventory of words, deleting unusable words, identifying synonyms and changing them to a single term, and parsing and interpreting the remaining information into several lithological, colour, structure, consistency, hydrogeological, and stratigraphic variables. The resulting database has exceeded expectations with respect to apparent location accuracy and geological coherence.