Grainswest - Tech 2026

Tech 2026 Grains West 50 AGAINST GRAIN THE A s the name of his Rocky Moun- tain House business suggests, Sheldon Rice hunts for water, and most of the time he locates it. WaterFind uses electroseismology, which employs electromagnetic and seismic signals to pinpoint under- ground water sources for wells on acreages, ranches, dryland and irrigat- ed farms and feedlots. It’s a modified version of the same technology used to locate oil and gas deposits. The method is pure science, but Rice has a surprisingly generous view of the ancient technique of dowsing. Also called water witching, the witcher holds an L-shaped metal rod loosely in each hand. When they cross, this sig- nals the location of underground water. Rice often works with witchers hired by landowners. Experience, however, has convinced him witching can find water in the first 50 feet of ground, but not beyond. “We’re looking for water be- tween 80 and 500 feet down. That’s the range where you find layers of rock that are normally saturated with water.” Rice spent almost three decades drilling for oil and gas. Though he can drill for the water he locates, Water- Find’s location service monopolizes his time. Arid southern Alberta has been a hotspot for jobs. Detection equipment is mounted on a side-by-side. A ramrod-like device tipped with a shotgun shell is used as an underground noise source. A set of buried sensors measures the re- A scientific update on an ancient method flected soundwaves of the blast. In an underground aquifer where water has infiltrated porous rock, these travel slower than through the surrounding rock. These variances are graphed on a laptop. “I’ve had great luck over the last few years in finding water,” said Rice. Since he purchased the business nine years ago, he has refined his technique. Suc- cess rates for wells drilled based on his prediction is 92 per cent over the life of his business, but 100 per cent over the last three years. On land zoned for agriculture, Alber- ta’s Water Program On-Farm Water Supply Stream grant covers 50 per cent of seismic water detection and water well drilling. Sheldon Rice and son Damian set up electroseismology equipment near Longview in their search for underground water. Photo:CourtesyofWaterFind