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Hydrological Monitoring

Automated and Manual Water Monitoring Solutions

Specialist monitoring services for hydrological monitoring systems.

Hydrological monitoring is used to measuring water quality and water levels across a wide range of environments, including rainfall catchments, surface waters such as streams and rivers, groundwater bodies, and major water storage assets like reservoirs. By providing real-time and continuous data, hydrological monitoring supports informed decision-making in both operational and environmental contexts, ensuring that infrastructure and natural water systems are managed safely and sustainably.

Hydrological sensors are widely used for environmental monitoring, helping organisations and public authorities understand the behaviour of water systems over time. Monitoring rivers, aquifers, reservoirs, and watersheds enables the early detection of contamination, the tracking of seasonal trends, and the identification of flooding or drought risks. Sixense installs hydrological monitoring networks that deliver accurate, reliable data to stakeholders, ensuring compliance with environmental regulations and supporting long-term water resource management.

The monitoring of hydraulic infrastructure is another key application. Dams, flood defences, spillways, water treatment plants, and water distribution systems rely on careful control of flow and pressure. Sixense can integrate hydrological sensors into these systems to support asset integrity assessments, operational performance monitoring, and early-warning systems for anomalous conditions. This allows asset owners to respond quickly to developing risks, improving safety and reducing maintenance costs through proactive rather than reactive management.

Hydrological monitoring is also essential in construction and tunnelling operations beneath the water table, where groundwater levels must often be controlled through pumping or dewatering systems. Sixense provides the instrumentation and data management needed to accurately measure water level drawdown and ensure that dewatering activities do not cause unintended impacts such as ground settlement, structural movement, or environmental harm. This enhances project safety, regulatory compliance, and effective control of groundwater conditions throughout construction.

Soil remediation projects also benefit from hydrological monitoring, particularly where contaminated groundwater must be tracked and treated. Sensors can be used to assess the movement of contaminants, evaluate the success of remediation techniques, and confirm that treated water meets discharge or reuse standards. Sixense can implement these monitoring systems and provide ongoing data reporting, enabling project teams to demonstrate compliance and the effectiveness of remediation measures.

In many projects, hydrological sensors are deployed alongside meteorological and geotechnical instrumentation to form an integrated monitoring network. Sixense specialises in combining these systems into unified data platforms, allowing stakeholders to view rainfall, water level, ground movement, pore pressure, and structural response data in one place. This holistic approach provides a clearer understanding of environmental interactions and project behaviour, supporting safer construction practices, improved environmental stewardship, and long-term asset sustainability.

Monitoring water quality and levels

The ability to monitor the water cycle is a major challenge for effective water resource management and flood prevention.

Correct operation of all hydraulic infrastructures – especially dams – requires detailed knowledge of river and reservoir water levels and quality.

Subsurface contracting often involves working below the water table. The ability to correctly design and dimension engineered structures requires detailed prior knowledge of water levels and water table operation. When work is in progress, and especially where that work involves lowering the water table, it is essential to monitor groundwater levels and quality continuously. This type of monitoring is usually carried out in parallel with monitoring the ground movements generated by the process.

The installation of hydrological sensors is also essential for polluted worksites requiring soil remediation.

Sensor types

The surface water levels of rivers and reservoirs are measured using limnimeters (water level measurement) and flow meters (flow measurement).

The rain gauges used to measure rainfall levels are usually installed as part of complete weather stations.

To monitor soil water content, piezometers (for water level measurement) and interstitial pressure cells (for water pressure measurement) are installed at the required monitoring depths.

Water quality monitoring

Water quality is monitored using:

  • Turbidity sensors
  • Conductivity and temperature sensors
  • pH sensors
  • Dissolved oxygen sensors
  • Oxidation-Reduction potential electrodes

Installing hydrological sensors allows you to:

  • Monitor water resources
  • Prevent extreme rises in water levels and flooding
  • Maintain correct operation of hydraulic infrastructures
  • Monitor subsurface contracting and/or soil remediation projects

The added benefits of using our hydrological monitoring

Cutting-edge expertise

developed from 20 years of experience and in-house development

The availability of dedicated local teams

as a result of our extensive network

A turnkey service

from installation to provision of pre-processed data in an accessible webspace

A culture of innovation

committed to continual development of solutions more closely aligned with the practical challenges of our clients

A proactive maintenance programme

built around data quality control and monitoring