Abstract
The proposed work concerns the application of a deep geoelectrical survey to a carbonate aquifer in order to define the best location for exploitation well drilling for increasing water supply. However, an optimal characterization of a groundwater resource is the necessary condition to reach the indicated aim. Therefore, the geoelectrical investigation was guided from the previous geological and hydrogeological characterization. Moreover, geophysical methods are good tools to improve the groundwater model when detailed information is necessary, such as the localization of a pumping well. The work summarizes the hydrogeological knowledge at the West of the Basilicata Region (Muro Lucano, Italy). The investigated area is characterized by the presence of a karst aquifer which is made up of a carbonate ridge (Castelgrande, Muro Lucano) that tectonically dips southward and is widely covered by Pliocene deposits (sands and conglomerates), by the Irpinian unit and Sicilide unit formations, and by debris slope and landslide deposits. The assessment of the complex hydrogeological framework of the area was detailed by the use of a new multichannel deep geoelectrical technique (DERT). In details, the proposed technique was able to successfully locate a less resistive zone connected to a more fractured limestone and then it was suitable for the localization of a groundwater exploitation well.
Highlights
Hundreds of millions of people worldwide live in karst areas and are supplied by drinking water from karst aquifers
Karst carbonate aquifers play an extremely important role in water supply, irrigation, and power generation due to the exceptional water quality and quantity. They are a very vulnerable and dynamic system due to their peculiar features [3]: (i) Heterogeneity: the properties of karst aquifers greatly vary in space (ii) Anisotropy: the aquifer hydraulic properties depend on the orientation of geologic fabric elements
We focus our attention on the analysis of hydrogeological and electrical resistivity data, acquired by a new deep electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) (DERT) system, to have an image of Muro Lucano Mounts buried hydrogeological structures and to understand the deep water circulation system
Summary
Hundreds of millions of people worldwide live in karst areas and are supplied by drinking water from karst aquifers. The geological structures and the local lithological variations play an important role in karst system, where various depositional and diagenetic processes and fracture distribution can produce a wide range of conduit size These features make a karst aquifer very complex, so for these reasons, they require increased protection and application of innovative methodologies for their investigation. For these reasons, in recent years, the use of geophysical investigations in karst regions has increased rapidly with the aim of (i) giving more detailed information on underground karst morphology characteristics (detecting and characterizing caves and fractures) and (ii) understanding karst hydrogeological functioning, as a support to hydrogeochemical information [4, 5]. These techniques have the advantage of greater spatial resolution, lower costs, simpler field procedures, and more rapid inversion and interpretation of data [6]
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