Groundwater-quality monitoring—effective method of hydrogeological system pollution prevention

Groundwater-quality monitoring plays an important role in groundwater protection and quality conservation. National, regional, and site-specific monitoring programs operating in Czechoslovakia concern collection of back-ground data on groundwater quality and regional diffusion pollution problems. Site-specific monitoring is concerned with point sources of pollution. Pilot monitoring stations with automatic data acquisition systems optimize monitoring methods, design of monitoring networks, sampling techniques, and frequency and selection of the variables analyzed. Ground-water-quality monitoring in Czechoslovakia supports decision and policy making in areas of intensive farming. Time and spatial changes in shallow vulnerable aquifers are evaluated in several areas of national territory and support integrated land-use planning and groundwater protection management.