Aquifer storage and recharge: Innovation in water resources management

Stormwater and treated sewerage effluent, previously regarded as waste, are now being reused in South Australia through the innovative aquifer storage and recharge technique. After pretreatment in wetlands, this water is stored in otherwise unused brackish aquifers for summer irrigation of parklands. Trials are underway using recycled water from the Bolivar Wastewater Treatment Plant for irrigation of market gardens. This paper presents several case studies where the aquifer storage and recharge technique has been successful, with savings in water and infrastructure costs, as well as providing environmental benefits.     

Provenance of buried esker groundwater: the case of Vars-Winchester esker aquifer,Eastern Ontario,Canada

An innovative mode of groundwater recharge to a buried esker aquifer is considered. The current conceptual model affords a natural safeguard to underlying aquifers from the overlying muds. A hypothesis of groundwater recharge to a buried esker aquifer via preferential pathways across its overlying muds is tested here by heuristic numerical one-dimensional and two-dimensional modeling simulations. The hypothesis has been tested against two other conventionally accepted scenarios involving: (1) distal esker outcrop areas and (2) remote shallow-bedrock recharge areas. The main evidence comes from documented recharge pressure pulses in the overlying mud aquitard and in the underlying esker hydraulic-head time series for the Vars-Winchester esker aquifer in Eastern Ontario, Canada. These perturbations to the potentiometric surface are believed to be the aquifer response to recharge events. The migration rate of these pressure pulses is directly related to the hydraulic diffusivity of the formation. The measured response time and response amplitude between singular radar precipitation events and well hydrographs constituted the heuristic model calibration targets. The main evidence also includes mud-layering deformation (water escape features) which was observed in seismic surveys of the over-esker muds. These disturbed stratigraphic elements provide a realistic mechanism for migrating water to transit through the muds. The effective hydraulic conductivities of these preferential pathways in the muds were estimated to be between 2?×?10^?6 and 7?×?10^?6 m/s. The implications of these findings relate to the alleged natural safeguard of these overlying muds.     

Recharge into Southern High Plains aquifer—possible mechanisms,unresolved questions

The High Plains aquifer in the Southern High Plains (Texas and New Mexico), consisting of Tertiary, Cretaceous, and Triassic formations, has traditionally been considered to be recharged by its uppermost water-bearing unit, the Tertiary Ogallala aquifer. This article provides hydrologic, chemical, and isotopic evidence that in the Southern High Plains: (1) Cretaceous rocks actually contain independent recharge sources; (2) Triassic rocks cannot currently be recharged by the Ogallala aquifer in significant quantities; and (3) in places, both Cretaceous and Triassic aquifers recharge the overlying Ogallala aquifer. On the basis of chemical and isotopic data, playa lakes seem to act as the predominant recharge source of the Ogallala aquifer, suggesting recharge rates greater than 30 mm/yr, as opposed to the much lower rates reported by others. The Cretaceous aquifers are being recharged by cross-formational flow from the Ogallala aquifer but also from overlying Quaternary sands and the underlying Triassic aquifer in eastern New Mexico. Current recharge into the Triassic aquifer may be insignificant.     

Positive and negative impacts of longwall mine subsidence on a sandstone aquifer

 Subsidence due to longwall underground coal mining changes the hydraulic properties, heads, yields, and in some cases the groundwater chemistry of overlying bedrock aquifers. A 7-year study of a sandstone aquifer overlying an active longwall mine in Illinois has supported a comprehensive model of these impacts. Subsidence caused increases in permeability and storativity over the longwall panel. These changes initially caused a major decline in water levels in the sandstone, but the aquifer recovered slightly within a few months and fully within several years after mining. The enhanced hydraulic properties combined with potentiometric recovery resulted in a zone of greater well yield. However, at sites with very poor transmissivity and inadequate recharge pathways, recovery may not occur. Also, at the study site, the physical enhancement was accompanied by a deterioration in groundwater quality from slightly brackish, sodium bicarbonate water to more brackish water with increased sulfate levels. Received: 17 March 1997 · Accepted: 9 September 1997     

Impact of groundwater withdrawals on the interaction of multi-layered aquifers in the Viterbo geothermal area (central Italy)

The impact of groundwater withdrawals on the interaction between multi-layered aquifers with different water qualities in the Viterbo geothermal area (central Italy) was studied. In this area, deep thermal waters are used to supply thermal spas and public pools. A shallow overlying aquifer carries cold and fresh water, used for irrigation and the local drinking-water supply. Starting with a conceptual hydrogeological model, two simplified numerical models were implemented: a steady-state flow model of the entire groundwater system, and a steady-state flow and heat transport model of a representative area, which included complex interactions between the aquifers. The impact of increased withdrawals associated with potential future development of the thermal aquifer must be considered in terms of the water temperature of the existing thermal sources. However, withdrawals from the shallow aquifer might also influence the discharge of thermal sources and quality of the water withdrawn from the shallow wells. The exploitation of the two aquifers is dependent on the hydraulic conductivity and thickness of the intervening aquitard, which maintains the delicate hydrogeological equilibrium. Effective methods to control this equilibrium include monitoring the vertical gradient between the two aquifers and the residual discharge of natural thermal springs.     

矿井涌水量动态预测非稳定释水-断面流法

我国北方煤田上覆地下水系统含水层以砂岩为主,是矿井主要充水水源。除浅部、露头区外,上覆砂岩地下水系统总体上构成非径流型蓄水构造,弹性贮存是其地下水主要赋存状态,压力传导、局部渗流为地下水动力学模式,矿井涌水主要为承压含水层弹性释放。非充填开采,煤层上覆地层周期性冒裂形成冒裂二元结构体,其自身释水(弹性、重力)与其外侧含水层断面弹性释水叠加形成矿井涌水。冒裂二元结构体释水随冒裂周期发生,时间短暂。外侧含水层断面释水可用非稳定流定降深沟(渠)流方程描述,进而获得外侧含水层断面释水单宽流量。外侧含水层释水断面随冒裂周期性延展累积,迭代更新,矿井涌水流量随之变化。在研究、刻画外侧含水层释水断面延展、迭代时空规律基础上,给出含水层断面释水流量预测方法、公式,与冒裂二元结构体自身周期性释水流量叠加,获新的矿井涌水量预测方法—非稳定释水-断面流法。     

Fate and identification of oil-brine contamination in different hydrogeologic settings

Past disposal of oil-field brine at the surface has caused substantial contamination of water resources in Kansas. Natural saline water occurs in and discharges from Permian bedrock in parts of the state, and other anthropogenic sources of saline water exist, requiring clear identification of different sources. Time-series analysis of Cl⁻ concentration and streamflow relative to pre-contamination contents, and end-member mixing plots, especially for Br⁻ and Cl⁻, are practical methods for source differentiation and quantification. Although regulations preventing escape of saltwater from oil wells were first passed in Kansas in 1935, much oil and gas brine was disposed on the surface through the 1940s. Hydrogeologic characteristics of the areas with past surface disposal of oil brine differ appreciably and result in large differences in the ratio of saltwater transported in streams or ground water. Much of the brine disposed during the 1910s to 1940s in an area of silty clay soils overlying shale and limestone bedrock in south-central Kansas soon ran off or was flushed from the surface by rain into streams. Chloride concentration in the rivers draining this area often exceeded 1000 mg/L after the start of oil production up to the 1950s. Chloride content in the rivers then generally declined to about 100 mg/L or less in recent low flows. Oil brine was also disposed in surface ponds overlying the unconsolidated High Plains aquifer in south-central Kansas from the latter 1920s into the 1940s. Most of the surface-disposed brine infiltrated to the underlying aquifer. Where the High Plains aquifer is thin, saltwater has migrated along the top of clay layers or the underlying shaly bedrock and either discharged into small streams or flowed into thicker parts of the aquifer. Where the aquifer is thick, surface-disposed oil brine moved downward until reaching clay lenses, migrated latterly to the edge of the clay, and again moved downward if still dense enough. Water-level declines from pumping have increased the lateral migration rate of the saltwater contamination in the aquifer towards water-supply wells. The period of flushing most of the surface-disposed saltwater from the area of shale and limestone bedrock is on the order of many decades but is at least many centuries for the deeper parts of the High Plains aquifer.     

Testing the 14C ages and conservative behavior of dissolved 14C in a carbonate aquifer in Yucca Flat,Nevada (USA), using 36Cl from groundwater and packrat middens

Corrected groundwater ¹⁴C ages from the carbonate aquifer in Yucca Flat at the former Nevada Test Site (now the Nevada National Security Site), USA, were evaluated by comparing temporal variations of groundwater ³⁶Cl/Cl estimated with these ¹⁴C ages with published records of meteoric ³⁶Cl/Cl variations preserved in packrat middens (piles of plant fragments, fecal matter and urine). Good agreement between these records indicates that the groundwater ¹⁴C ages are reasonable and that ¹⁴C is moving with chloride without sorbing to the carbonate rock matrix or fracture coatings, despite opposing evidence from laboratory experiments. The groundwater ¹⁴C ages are consistent with other hydrologic evidence that indicates significant basin infiltration ceased 8,000 to 10,000 years ago, and that recharge to the carbonate aquifer is from paleowater draining through overlying tuff confining units along major faults. This interpretation is supported by the relative age differences as well as hydraulic head differences between the alluvial and volcanic aquifers and the carbonate aquifer. The carbonate aquifer ¹⁴C ages suggest that groundwater velocities throughout much of Yucca Flat are about 2 m/yr, consistent with the long-held conceptual model that blocking ridges of low-permeability rock hydrologically isolate the carbonate aquifer in Yucca Flat from the outlying regional carbonate flow system.     

Comparative application of two methods (COP and PaPRIKa) for groundwater vulnerability mapping in Mediterranean karst aquifers (France and Spain)

A comparative test of two vulnerability mapping methods (COP and PaPRIKa) specifically dedicated to for karst aquifers was carried out on two Mediterranean carbonate aquifers. The vulnerability maps obtained for each aquifer present important differences. To identify and determine the origin of these differences, the results were statistically analyzed using sensitivity analysis, coefficients of determination and scatter graphs. In addition, the global vulnerability (Gv) parameter was used to measure the general vulnerability of the aquifer and to compare the results obtained. This statistical analysis led us to conclude that the main cause of differences between these two methods used to assess aquifer vulnerability lie in the relative importance of the parameters employed in calculating the vulnerability index. For the PaPRIKa method, the variable related to infiltration (slope and karst features) has the most influence, with less weight being assigned to the protective capacity of layers overlying the aquifer. For the COP method, the most influent variable is defined by the layers overlying the aquifer, together with infiltration characteristics, determined by the relative importance of different forms of infiltration in each aquifer. The vulnerability mappings performed using the COP method present greater coherence with the known hydrogeological behavior of the study areas, especially the Spanish aquifers. Nevertheless, further hydrogeological investigations are needed, such as ones to validate the obtained vulnerability maps.     

Natural salinity sources in the groundwaters of Jordan—Importance of sustainable aquifer management

In recent years, voices in Jordan became lauder to exploit the fresh to brackish deep groundwater overlain by fresh groundwater bodies. In this article the implications of such a policy on the existing fresh water bodies are worked out through studying the sources of salinity in the different aquifer systems and the potentials of salinity mobilization by artificial changes in the hydrodynamic regimes. It is concluded that extracting the groundwater of deep aquifers overlain by fresh water bodies, whether the deep groundwater is fresh to brackish, brackish or salty, is equivalent to extracting groundwater from the overlying fresh groundwater bodies because of the hydraulic connections of the deep and the shallow aquifers’ groundwaters. The consequences are even more complicated and severe because exploiting the deep groundwater containing brackish or salty water will lead to refilling by fresh groundwater leaking from the overlying aquifers. The leaking water becomes salinized as soon as it enters the pore spaces of the emptied deep aquifer matrix and by mixing with the deep aquifer brackish or saline groundwater. Therefore, the move to exploit the deep groundwater is misleading and damaging the aquifers and is unjust to future generation's rights in the natural wealth of Jordan or any other country with similar aquifers’ set-up. In addition, desalination produces brines with high salinity which cannot easily be discharged in the highlands of Jordan (with only very limited access to the open sea) because they will on the long term percolate down into fresh water aquifers.     

Ambient vertical flow in long-screen wells: a case study in the Fontainebleau Sands Aquifer (France)

A tritium (³H) profile was constructed in a long-screened well (LSW) of the Fontainebleau Sands Aquifer (France), and the data were combined with temperature logs to gain insight into the potential effects of the ambient vertical flow (AVF) of water through the well on the natural aquifer stratification. AVF is commonly taken into account in wells located in fracture aquifers or intercepting two different aquifers with distinct hydraulic heads. However, due to the vertical hydraulic gradient of the flow lines intercepted by wells, AVF of groundwater is a common process within any type of aquifer. The detection of ³H in the deeper parts of the studied well (approximate depth 50 m), where ³H-free groundwater is expected, indicates that shallow young water is being transported downwards through the well itself. The temperature logs show a nearly zero gradient with depth, far below the mean geothermal gradient in sedimentary basins. The results show that the age distribution of groundwater samples might be biased in relation to the age distribution in the surroundings of the well. The use of environmental tracers to investigate aquifer properties, particularly in LSWs, is then limited by the effects of the AVF of water that naturally occurs through the well.     

Assessing groundwater availability and the response of the groundwater system to intensive exploitation in the North China Plain by analysis of long-term isotopic tracer data

The use of isotope tracers as a tool for assessing aquifer responses to intensive exploitation is demonstrated and used to attain a better understanding of the sustainability of intensively exploited aquifers in the North China Plain. Eleven well sites were selected that have long-term (years 1985–2014) analysis data of isotopic tracers. The stable isotopes δ¹⁸O and δ²H and hydrochemistry were used to understand the hydrodynamic responses of the aquifer system, including unconfined and confined aquifers, to groundwater abstraction. The time series data of ¹⁴C activity were also used to assess groundwater age, thereby contributing to an understanding of groundwater sustainability and aquifer depletion. Enrichment of the heavy oxygen isotope (¹⁸O) and elevated concentrations of chloride, sulfate, and nitrate were found in groundwater abstracted from the unconfined aquifer, which suggests that intensive exploitation might induce the potential for aquifer contamination. The time series data of ¹⁴C activity showed an increase of groundwater age with exploitation of the confined parts of the aquifer system, which indicates that a larger fraction of old water has been exploited over time, and that the groundwater from the deep aquifer has been mined. The current water demand exceeds the sustainable production capabilities of the aquifer system in the North China Plain. Some measures must be taken to ensure major cuts in groundwater withdrawals from the aquifers after a long period of depletion.     

Role of Hydrology in the Formation of Co-rich Mn Crusts from the Equatorial N Pacific,Equatorial S Indian Ocean and the NE Atlantic Ocean

Co-rich Mn crusts from four different locations of the world ocean have been studied to understand the role of dissolved oxygen of the ambient seawater in the formation of Co-rich Mn crusts. WOCE (World Ocean Circulation Experiment) oxygen profiles of modern seawater in the Equatorial North Pacific Ocean, Equatorial South Indian Ocean and the North East Atlantic Ocean have been evaluated with respect to the occurrence of Co-rich Mn crusts at depths ranging from 1500 to 3200 m. The oxygen content at these depths varied from ∼90–240 µmol/kg. The oxygen minimum zone (OMZ), with oxygen contents in the range ∼45–100 µmol/kg, is located in the depth range 800–900 m in these regions. The age of the ocean crust on which seamounts formed is in the range 80.3–180 Ma. Profiles of the oxygen contents of seawater with depth in the oceans are shown to be extremely useful in establishing the optimum conditions for the formation of Co-rich Mn crusts. The use of WOCE oxygen profiles to study geochemical processes in the oceans is highly recommended.     

Holocene estuarine sediments as a source of arsenic in Pleistocene groundwater in suburbs of Hanoi,Vietnam

Groundwater pollution by arsenic is a major health threat in suburban areas of Hanoi, Vietnam. The present study evaluates the effect of the sedimentary environments of the Pleistocene and Holocene deposits, and the recharge systems, on the groundwater arsenic pollution in Hanoi suburbs distant from the Red River. At two study sites (Linh Dam and Tai Mo communes), undisturbed soil cores identified a Pleistocene confined aquifer (PCA) and Holocene unconfined aquifer (HUA) as major aquifers, and Holocene estuarine and deltaic sediments as an aquitard layer between the two aquifers. The Holocene estuarine sediments (approximately 25–40 m depth, 9.6–4.8 cal ka BP) contained notably high concentrations of arsenic and organic matter, both likely to have been accumulated by mangroves during the Holocene sea-level highstand. The pore waters in these particular sediments exhibited elevated levels of arsenic and dissolved organic carbon. Arsenic in groundwater was higher in the PCA (25–94 μg/L) than in the HUA (5.2–42 μg/L), in both the monitoring wells and neighboring household tubewells. Elevated arsenic concentration in the PCA groundwater was likely due to vertical infiltration through the arsenic-rich and organic-matter-rich overlying Holocene estuarine sediments, caused by massive groundwater abstraction from the PCA. Countermeasures to prevent arsenic pollution of the PCA groundwater may include seeking alternative water resources, reducing water consumption, and/or appropriate choice of aquifers for groundwater supply.     

Topical Collection: Coastal aquifers in the Middle East and North Africa region

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region suffers from low precipitation and high evaporation. Coastal areas of the MENA region are usually densely populated; hence, the coastal aquifers are easily over-exploited beyond their safe yield, and seawater intrusion and aquifer salinization have been caused by the groundwater-level declines. Four studies in MENA coastal aquifers, on seawater intrusion modeling and aquifer recharge and salinization using isotopes, have been brought together in a topical collection and are discussed in this essay. A brief overview is given of managed aquifer recharge as an effective method to combat groundwater-level decline, seawater intrusion and aquifer salinization in MENA counties.     

地面核磁共振技术在隐伏火烧区富水性探测中的应用

煤层隐伏火烧区上覆基岩复合含水层(包括风化基岩和烧变岩含水层)是煤层开采的主要威胁之一, 明确隐伏火烧区的富水性对矿井水害防治具有重要意义。基于此, 以发生过较大突水事故的柠条塔煤矿为研究对象, 利用地面核磁共振(SNMR)技术开展隐伏火烧区含水层富水性探测并对其进行分析和验证。结果表明, 隐伏火烧区共有2个含水层位, 分别为第四系松散砂层含水层和1-2 上煤上覆基岩含水层; 第四系砂层含水层富水性受地表地形及其下隔水层顶部起伏形态影响水平变化较大; 1-2 上煤上覆基岩含水层富水性总体西南较低、北东较高, 该含水层厚度9~30 m, 局部相对较厚, 推测为1-2 上煤火烧区风化基岩和烧变岩含水层的叠加反映; 研究区内1-2 上煤上覆基岩含水层总体呈现出西部及中部偏东南区域富水性相对较大, 其余区域富水性相对较小。利用SNMR得到的含水层富水程度与探放水孔及水文孔的涌水量结果大致相同, 表明该方法的勘探结果相对可靠, 可用于隐伏火烧区富水性的探测。      

Recovery scenarios for deep over-exploited aquifers with limited recharge: methodology and application to an aquifer in Belgium

Recharge of deep-seated aquifers must be provided through leakage from overlying geological formations and can be very limited. Although hydraulic characteristics of these aquifers may be favorable for extensive exploitation, the renewability of the groundwater resource may be very restricted and only significant on long time scales. Over-exploitation of such aquifers leads to steadily declining piezometric levels and water balancing and steady state conditions are not to be expected on the short term. Recovery of such systems is very difficult, also because of the socio-economic dependencies of the water resource and the long time it requires to replenish the system. Management plans for restoration should be based on the transient hydrodynamical behaviour. A recovery plan should be developed based on results of a groundwater flow model. In a first step must be simulated how long it will take for the aquifer system to fully recover by natural recharge. As this will most often be a very long time it can be cancelled out as a realistic scenario. An alternative objective is to be formulated which could be achieved in the near future on a time scale of years or decades. Using model simulations, reduction schemes of exploitation rates shall be quantified that will allow to reach these defined goals, such as raising piezometric levels above the top of the aquifer itself or above the top of the overlying geological unit. The methodology is illustrated with an example of a deep hard rock aquifer in Belgium where piezometric levels have dropped below the top. The objective here was to raise the levels again above the top within the next 50 years. However, this is not accomplished by balancing aquifer recharge and discharge, but is reached by a lateral redistribution of the water over the aquifer extent. A full recovery of this aquifer would require at least a century with only a very limited amount of exploitation.     

Groundwater occurrence and aquifer vulnerability assessment of Magodo Area,Lagos, Southwestern Nigeria

A combination of vertical electrical soundings (VES), 2D electrical resistivity imaging (ERI) surveys and borehole logs were conducted at Magodo, Government Reserve Area (GRA) Phase 1, Isheri, Southwestern Nigeria, with the aim of delineating the different aquifers present and assessing the groundwater safety in the area. The Schlumberger electrode array was adopted for the VES and dipole-dipole array was used for the 2D imaging. The maximum current electrode spread (AB) was 800 m and the 2D traverse range between 280 and 350 m in the east-west direction. The thickness of impermeable layer overlying the confined aquifer was used for the vulnerability ratings of the study area. Five lithological units were delineated: the topsoil, clayey sand, unconsolidated sand which is the first aquifer, a clay stratum and the sand layer that constitutes the confined aquifer horizon. The topsoil thickness varies from 0.6 to 2.6 m, while its resistivity values vary between 55.4 and 510.6 Ω/m. The clayey sand layers have resistivity values ranging from 104.2 to 143.9 Ω/m with thickness varying between 0.6 and 14.7 m. The resistivity values of the upper sandy layer range from 120.7 to 2195.2 Ω/m and thickness varies from 3.3 to 94.0 m. The resistivity of the clay layer varies from 11.3 to 96.1 Ω/m and the thickness ranges from 29.6 to 76.1 m. The resistivity value of the confined aquifer ranges between 223 and 1197.4 Ω/m. The longitudinal conductance (0.0017–0.02 mhos) assessment of the topsoil shows that the topsoil within the study area has poor overburden protective capacity, and the compacted impermeable clay layer shows that the underlying confined aquifer is well protected from contamination and can be utilized as a source of portable groundwater in the study area. This study therefore enabled the delineation of shallow aquifers, the variation of their thicknesses and presented a basis for safety assessment of groundwater potential zones in the study area.     

A synthetic approach integrating surface and subsurface data for prospecting deep aquifers: the Southeast Tunisia

The Southeast Tunisia has remarkable thermal springs that have been used for bathing since many years. Currently, studies are being carried out to investigate the possible use of the hot water for heating buildings and for greenhouses. Springs with discharge temperatures between 26.8 and 58°C exist in the area. The flow rates range between 7 and 66 l/s with total dissolved solids (TDS) varying between 2,020 and 4,030 mg/l. Both geological–hydrogeological setting and the similarity in chemical characteristics between the Zarat spring and nearby water wells suggest that the hot water from this spring may be related to the Senonian aquifer. However, the hydrogeothermal approach shows that the depth of the reservoir that supplies the Zarat spring is greater than that of the Senonian aquifer. In fact, geothermometry approach indicates that fluids emerging from the Lower Cretaceous sandstones reach temperatures of approximately 78°C at depth, while the fluid temperature from the nearby water wells is 32°C. Through the integration of various types of data we found that the thermal water of Southeast Tunisia is of meteoric origin. This water infiltrates deeply into the Lower Cretaceous sandstones and reaches a high temperature before rising upwards to supply the hot springs and well discharge zones. It appears that the upward movement of hot water from the deep aquifers to shallow ones is probably due to the abundant fractures in the area.