The use of hydrogeochemical analyses and multivariate statistics for the characterization of groundwater resources in a complex aquifer system. A case study in Amyros River basin, Thessaly, central Greece

Abstract. The Suzhou-Wuxi-Changzhou (known as "Su-Xi-Chang") area, located in the southern part of Jiangsu Province, China, experienced serious land subsidence caused by overly exploitation of groundwater. The largest cumulative land subsidence has reached 3 m. With the rapid progress of land subsidence since the late 1980s, more than 20 earth fissures developed in Su-Xi-Chang area, although no pre-existing faults have been detected in the surroundings. The mechanisms of earth fissure generation associated with excessive groundwater pumping are: (i) differential land subsidence, (ii) differences in the thickness of the aquifer system, and (iii) bedrock ridges and cliffs at relatively shallow depths. In this study, the Guangming Village Earth Fissures in Wuxi area are selected as a case study to discuss in details the mechanisms of fissure generation. Aquifer exploitation resulted in a drop of groundwater head at a rate of 5–6 m yr−1 in the 1990s, with a cumulative drawdown of 40 m. The first earth fissure at Guangming Village was observed in 1998. The earth fissures, which developed in a zone characterized by a cumulative land subsidence of approximately 800 mm, are located at the flank of a main subsidence bowl with differential subsidence ranging from 0 to 1600 mm in 2001. The maximum differential subsidence rate amounts to 5 mm yr−1 between the two sides of the fissures. The fissure openings range from 30 to 80 mm, with a cumulative length of 1000 m. Depth of bed rock changes from 60 to 140 m across the earth fissure. The causes of earth fissure generation at Guangming Village includes a decrease in groundwater levels, differences in the thickness of aquifer system, shallow depths of bedrock ridges and cliffs, and subsequent differential land subsidence.

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Development of an integrated flood hazard assessment model for a complex river system: a case study of the Mun River Basin, Thailand

Modeling Earth Systems and Environment ◽

10.1007/s40808-019-00634-7 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 5 (4) ◽

pp. 1265-1281 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Saowanit Prabnakorn ◽

F. X. Suryadi ◽

Jongkon Chongwilaikasem ◽

Charlotte de Fraiture

Keyword(s):

River Basin ◽

Hazard Assessment ◽

Flood Hazard ◽

River System ◽

Assessment Model ◽

System A ◽

Flood Hazard Assessment

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Characterization of shale pore system: A case study of Paleogene Xin'gouzui Formation in the Jianghan basin, China

Marine and Petroleum Geology ◽

10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2016.10.014 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 79 ◽

pp. 321-334 ◽

Cited By ~ 46

Author(s):

Pengfei Zhang ◽

Shuangfang Lu ◽

Junqian Li ◽

Haitao Xue ◽

Wenhao Li ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Pore System ◽

System A ◽

Jianghan Basin

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Hydrogeochemical and Hydrodynamic Assessment of Tirnavos Basin, Central Greece

Water ◽

10.3390/w13060759 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (6) ◽

pp. 759

Author(s):

Ioannis Vrouhakis ◽

Evangelos Tziritis ◽

Andreas Panagopoulos ◽

Georgios Stamatis

Keyword(s):

Ion Exchange ◽

Water Level ◽

Multivariate Statistics ◽

Groundwater Resources ◽

Environmental Isotopes ◽

Resources Management ◽

Central Greece ◽

Combined Use ◽

Water Level Measurements ◽

Groundwater Resources Management

A combined hydrogeochemical and hydrodynamic characterization for the assessment of key aspects related to groundwater resources management was performed in a highly productive agricultural basin of the Thessaly region in central Greece. A complementary suite of tools and methods—including graphical processing, hydrogeochemical modeling, multivariate statistics and environmental isotopes—have been applied to a comprehensive dataset of physicochemical analyses and water level measurements. Results revealed that the initial hydrogeochemistry of groundwater was progressively impacted by secondary phenomena (e.g., ion exchange and redox reactions) which were clearly delineated into distinct zones according to data processing. The progressive evolution of groundwater was further verified by the variation of the saturation indices of critical minerals. In addition, the combined use of water level measurements delineated the major pathways of groundwater flow. Interestingly, the additional joint assessment of environmental isotopes revealed a new pathway from E–NE (which had never before been validated), thus highlighting the importance of the joint tools/methods application in complex scientific tasks. The application of multivariate statistics identified the dominant processes that control hydrogeochemistry and fit well with identified hydrodynamic mechanisms. These included (as dominant factor) the salinization impact due to the combined use of irrigation water return and evaporitic mineral leaching, as well as the impact of the geogenic calcareous substrate (mainly karstic calcareous formations and dolostones). Secondary factors, acting as processes (e.g., redox and ion exchange), were identified and found to be in line with initial assessment, thus validating the overall characterization. Finally, the outcomes may prove to be valuable in the progression toward sustainable groundwater resources management. The results have provided spatial and temporal information for significant parameters, sources, and processes—which, as a methodological approach, could be adopted in similar cases of other catchments.

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