Exploration and Development of Ground Water from the Stone Forest Karst Aquifers of South China

Abstract

AbstractStone forest aquifers are the most widely exploited sources for ground water in the vast south China karst belt. These aquifers occupy a thin epikarst zone that has been infilled with clastic sediments. The aquifers are characterized by large lateral permeabilities and small reservoir capacities owing to their thinness. The carbonate rocks which comprise the framework for the aquifers are usually buried under the karst plains and large karst depressions where development is desired.The stone forest aquifer exploration procedure must first locate saturated zones. Second, those parts of the saturated zone having the greatest dissolution porosity must be identified because the infilled dissolution voids contain the water.The best indicators of saturation include the combination of low topography and the presence of active karst features such as springs, karst windows (natural openings exposing the water table), and live surface streams. These elements are readily observed on intermediate scale (1:20,000) aerial photography.The depth and degree of carbonate dissolution porosity is a function of several geologic and hydrologic factors including carbonate rock type, carbonate purity, fracture density, specific discharge, age of the circulation system, etc. These variables cannot be measured directly because the carbonate rocks are usually buried under a thin mantle of clastic sediments. However, if it is recognized that the ground‐water system has already exploited the most favorable geology and that dissolution is an ongoing process, a simple indirect method can be used to identify the areas having the greatest porosity. The presence of karst depressions and recent sinkholes are indicative of the most intensely karstified and hydraulically active parts of the epikarst zone. Mapping of these surface features from stereo aerial photography is a simple geomorphology exercise that can be used to directly identify the most favorable well sites.Current well construction practices in the south China karst belt involve both dug and drilled wells. Dug wells are preferred in many locations owing to both cost‐effectiveness associated with cheap labor and lack of available drilling equipment. The dug wells look and function identically to karst windows and thus conform to timeless water use traditions in the region.