2.4. Study Area
The study area consists of 15 rivers in New Brunswick as shown in Figure 1. New Brunswick lies on Canada’s Atlantic coast, and is bordered by the ocean on its southern (Bay of Fundy), northern and eastern (Gulf of St. Lawrence) shores. Generally, average air temperatures in New Brunswick range from −10˚C in January to 19˚C in July. New Brunswick receives approximately 1100 mm of precipitation annually, with 20% to 33% falling in the form of snow. Precipitation tends to be highest in southern parts of the province and the northern part of New Brunswick receives correspondingly higher amounts of precipitation in the form of snow due to colder winters. Major rivers and many smaller streams flow from the interior highlands of New Brunswick. Rainfall, snowmelt, and groundwater all contribute to the volume of flow, producing variations from season to season and year to year. Most high flows are caused by the spring snowmelt with at times a combination of snowmelt and rainfall. Heavy rainfall can also cause high flows, especially in small streams during the summer and autumn periods. Low flows generally occur in late summer, when precipitation is low and evaporation is high, and in late winter, when precipitation is stored until spring in the form of ice and snow. Winter low flows are more dominant in the northern part of the province.