Abstract
Abstract The integration of geophysical techniques with hydrological investigation is frequently used for solving different geological and environmental problems including groundwater quality and exploration and seismic vulnerability assessment. In this research, the shallow geophysical techniques comprising of electrical resistivity profiling, vertical electrical sounding, and ground magnetic were used to identify the contaminated areas lying in the upstream and downstream of Almisk Lake in Jeddah. The chemical analyses of water samples collected from the wells located in the downstream and upstream areas were used to support these results as an increase in the total dissolved solids (TDS) shows a decrease in the resistivity value. The results of geophysical techniques and hydrochemical analyses show that the TDS values are significantly higher in the upstream area of dam than those of the downstream, which suggests that the contaminating source is lying in the upstream of the reservoir. Moreover, the dam was not completely successful to block the contamination because of improper base. The hydrochemical analysis and geophysical results clearly indicate that the groundwater is not suitable for drinking and irrigation purposes.
Highlights
Geophysical techniques and hydrogeological studies are the pivotal tools to detect and study the different environmental problems caused by the drinking and waste water, and the integrated geophysical methods with a hydrogeological investigation can impeccably delineate the contaminated, partly affected, and virgin area
The geophysical techniques comprised of ground magnetic method and vertical electrical sounding (VES) and Electrical resistivity profiling (ERP)
The VES and ERP data are in good mutual correlation
Summary
Geophysical techniques and hydrogeological studies are the pivotal tools to detect and study the different environmental problems caused by the drinking and waste water, and the integrated geophysical methods with a hydrogeological investigation can impeccably delineate the contaminated, partly affected, and virgin area. The integration provides insight into the future potential and venerable subsurface areas to be affected by lateral and vertically downward movement of contaminants [1,2,3,4]. Many researchers used the integration of different geophysical methods in dealing with mapping of waste disposal areas and characterization of bedrocks to delineate fractures and faults through which transportation of contaminants takes place in the subsurface and nature of contaminants. Subsurface contamination can occur in different ways like intrusion of saltwater, seepage from buried waste, and groundwater pollution of soil through the landfill or direct contamination [5,6,7,8]. Ground magnetic method is the most widely used technique to identify the major subsurface structural elements such as faults, fractures which facilitate contaminant spreading [9]. The variation in resistivity values provides probable direction of landfill leachate flow in subsurface [10,11,12,13,14]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
