Geotechnical characterization of peatlands for a road development project in northern Ontario, Canada

Please join us on Tuesday November 10, 2026 for lunch and a presentation by Lynden Penner from J.D. Mollard and Associates (2010) Limited.

A buffet lunch will be served at 11:45 am in the Oak Room at the Park Town Hotel - The presentations commencing at noon. Please provide your vehicle license plate to reception to take advantage of free parking in the hotel parking lot.

About the presentation:

Webequie First Nation, located approximately 525 km north of Thunder Bay, Ontario, is developing an all-season road between the community of Webequie and the Ring of Fire mineral exploration area, approximately 110 km to the east.  The Webequie Supply Road (WSR) Project is the first Indigenous-led environmental assessment in Ontario.  Once completed, the WSR will offer year-round access between the community and the promising future mining area. It will also provide an all-season link to Marten Falls First Nation and the provincial highway system to the south via the Northern Road Link and Marten Falls Community Access Road projects, also currently in development. Beginning in 2018, JDMA’s WSR studies have been conducted to characterize extensive peatland terrain crossed by proposed route alternatives to assist with route selection, engineering design and groundwater monitoring. Studies began with remotely sensed terrain analysis to identify peatland types and delineate their boundaries, followed by ground truthing with visual assessment, hand probes and non-intrusive geophysics. In 2024 and 2025, a geotechnical testing program was completed using hand probes, a hand-operated heli-portable drill, field vane shear tests and geotechnical probe. Disturbed and undisturbed peat samples were collected for lab analysis. Integrated drilling and probe data from 142 sites provide information on peat thickness, degree of humification (von Post classification), physical properties (e.g., woody vs non-woody, size and types of fibers), groundwater levels and pH, undrained shear strength, peak and remolded vane shear strength. Characterization of peat within different peatland types allows for greater utilization of terrain maps for assessing engineering conditions in the study area. Combined, study results demonstrate the effective integration and implementation of these low-impact investigation methods in terms of cost, environmental impact, field logistics and data quality.

About the presenter:

Lynden Penner was born and raised in Rosthern, Sask., and began his consulting career with J.D. Mollard and Associates in 1986 after completing undergraduate and graduate degrees in geological engineering at the University of Saskatchewan. After working with Dr. Jack Mollard and his brother, George Mollard, for 24 years, Lynden became owner and president of JDMA in 2010. Lynden has published over 36 technical papers and has presented numerous workshops and seminars on air photo and satellite image interpretation for terrain analysis, engineering and environmental applications. Lynden has been a sessional lecturer for the Environmental Systems Engineering program at the University of Regina since 1987, utilizing Dr. Mollard’s famous air photo interpretation manual, or Blue Book, as the main teaching resource. His consulting experience covers a wide range of terrain analysis, infrastructure development and environmental projects across Canada, and he recently received the Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan Meritorious Achievement Award from the Association of Consulting Engineering Companies -Saskatchewan.