Abstract
The present work envisages the possible geometry of a contaminated plume of groundwater near hospital facilities by combining GIS (Geographic Information System) and geophysical methods. The rock underlying the soil and thin sedimentary cover of the study area is moderately fractured quartzite, which makes aquifers vulnerable to pollution. The GIS methodology is used to calculate the area that would be affected by the effluent source of residual water, based on algorithms that consider ground surface mapping (slopes, orientations, accumulated costs and cost per distance). Geophysical methods (electromagnetic induction and electric resistivity tomography) use changes in the electrical conductivity or resistivity of the subsurface to determine the geometry of the discharge and the degree of contamination. The model presented would allow a preliminary investigation regarding potential corrective measures.
Highlights
Water is a vital resource for human life, and its management has to be rational and sustainable
The multidisciplinary approach used in this work, combining GIS, electromagnetic induction (EM) and electric resistivity tomography (ERT), shows an effective, low-cost and non-invasive methodology that can be helpful in the estimation of contamination generated by human activities
The presented GIS method provides a feasible estimation of the extent of groundwater contaminating plumes close to the surface, as proved in our case study of sewage discharge near a hospital facility
Summary
Water is a vital resource for human life, and its management has to be rational and sustainable. In developed countries, surface and underground water resources are the focus of studies that analyses its potential for contamination. The problem in these cases is not related to finding water resources, but to find good quality resources. The discharge of sewage into land is one of the main causes of water pollution. To avoid this contamination, anthropogenic activities and their effluents should be located in areas resilient to water pollution (impermeable rocks, clay-like geological materials, etc.). In order to know the potential danger of contamination, vulnerability maps help to plan different land uses and to find the best location for human activities [1,2,3]. European environmental legislation requires the analysis of such risks (environmental assessment procedures: strategic and impact) this only applies to start-ups
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