Design and Construction of Deep Groundwater Monitoring Wells

Abstract The efficient operation of shallow groundwater (SGW) monitoring networks is crucial to water supply, in-land water protection, agriculture and nature conservation. In the present study, the spatial representativity of such a monitoring network in an area that has been thoroughly impacted by anthropogenic activity (river diversion/damming) is assessed, namely the Szigetköz adjacent to the River Danube. The main aims were to assess the spatial representativity of the SGW monitoring network in different discharge scenarios, and investigate the directional characteristics of this representativity, i.e. establish whether geostatistical anisotropy is present, and investigate how this changes with flooding. After the subtraction of a spatial trend from the time series of 85 shallow groundwater monitoring wells tracking flood events from 2006, 2009 and 2013, variography was conducted on the residuals, and the degree of anisotropy was assessed to explore the spatial autocorrelation structure of the network. Since the raw data proved to be insufficient, an interpolated grid was derived, and the final results were scaled to be representative of the original raw data. It was found that during floods the main direction of the spatial variance of the shallow groundwater monitoring wells alters, from perpendicular to the river to parallel with it for over a period of about two week. However, witht the passing of the flood, this returns to its original orientation in ~2 months. It is likely that this process is related first to the fast removal of clogged riverbed strata by the flood, then to their slower replacement. In addition, the study highlights the importance of assessing the direction of the spatial autocorrelation structure of shallow groundwater monitoring networks, especially if the aim is to derive interpolated maps for the further investigation or modeling of flow.

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Natural and Human-Induced Drivers of Groundwater Sustainability: A Case Study of the Mangyeong River Basin in Korea

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11051486 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (5) ◽

pp. 1486 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Jae Lee ◽

Eun Kwon ◽

Nam Woo

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

River Basin ◽

Groundwater Level ◽

Groundwater Monitoring ◽

Temporal Variations ◽

Quality Data ◽

Monitoring Wells ◽

Groundwater Sustainability ◽

Groundwater Drought ◽

Drought Conditions

The sustainability of rural areas depends on the availability of water resources. The Mangyeong River Basin (MRB) in Korea faces a water supply shortage for agriculture and industry. Based on 11-year (2005–2015) precipitation and groundwater monitoring data, groundwater sustainability was evaluated in terms of natural and man-made factors and their spatio-temporal variations. A precipitation time-series revealed a declining trend, but there were different seasonal trends between wet and dry periods, with declining and rising trends, respectively. Groundwater hydrographs from five national groundwater monitoring wells showed temporal variations. Groundwater wells located in downstream areas showed both recharge from upgradient areas and local man-made impacts (e.g. from pumping), resulting in an ambiguous relationship between precipitation and water levels. However, other monitoring wells in the upstream areas displayed water level responses to precipitation events, with a declining trend. Using the standardized precipitation index at a time scale of 12 months (SPI-12) and the standardized groundwater level anomaly, meteorological and groundwater drought conditions were compared to infer the relationship between precipitation deficit and groundwater shortage in the aquifer. The SPI results indicated severely dry to extremely dry conditions during 2008–2009 and 2015. However, the standardized groundwater level anomaly showed various drought conditions for groundwater, which were dependent on the site-specific hydrogeological characteristics. Finally, groundwater sustainability was assessed using water budget modelling and water quality data. Presently, if groundwater is used above 39.2% of the recharge value in the MRB, groundwater drought conditions occur throughout the basin. Considering water quality issues, with nitrate being elevated above the natural background, this critical abstraction value becomes 28.4%. Consequently, in the MRB, sustainable groundwater management should embrace both natural and human-induced factors to regulate over-exploitation and prevent contamination.

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Comparative application and optimization of different single-borehole dilution test techniques

Hydrogeology Journal ◽

10.1007/s10040-020-02271-2 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Nikolai Fahrmeier ◽

Nadine Goeppert ◽

Nico Goldscheider

Keyword(s):

Groundwater Monitoring ◽

Saturated Zone ◽

One Dimensional ◽

Monitoring Wells ◽

Advantages And Disadvantages ◽

Advection Dispersion ◽

Fractured Aquifers ◽

Tracer Distribution ◽

Deep Boreholes ◽

The One

AbstractSingle-borehole dilution tests (SBDTs) are a method for characterizing groundwater monitoring wells and boreholes, and are based on the injection of a tracer into the saturated zone and the observation of concentration over depth and time. SBDTs are applicable in all aquifer types, but especially interesting in heterogeneous karst or fractured aquifers. Uniform injections aim at a homogeneous tracer concentration throughout the entire saturated length and provide information about inflow and outflow horizons. Also, in the absence of vertical flow, horizontal filtration velocities can be calculated. The most common method for uniform injections uses a hosepipe to inject the tracer. This report introduces a simplified method that uses a permeable injection bag (PIB) to achieve a close-to-uniform tracer distribution within the saturated zone. To evaluate the new method and to identify advantages and disadvantages, several tests have been carried out, in the laboratory and in multiple groundwater monitoring wells in the field. Reproducibility of the PIB method was assessed through repeated tests, on the basis of the temporal development of salt amount and calculated apparent filtration velocities. Apparent filtration velocities were calculated using linear regression as well as by inverting the one-dimensional (1D) advection-dispersion equation using CXTFIT. The results show that uniform-injection SBDTs with the PIB method produce valuable and reproducible outcomes and contribute to the understanding of groundwater monitoring wells and the respective aquifer. Also, compared to the hosepipe method, the new injection method requires less equipment and less effort, and is especially useful for deep boreholes.

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