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A process-based method for assessing confined aquifer vulnerability to pollutants in Jining, China

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Abstract

Many shallow aquifers in north China are seriously polluted and cannot be used any more. Therefore, the confined groundwater exploitation is steadily increasing. With the rapid decline of confined groundwater head, the risk of confined aquifer contamination by leaky recharge from shallow aquifer is significantly increased. In this paper, the cumulated time that the pollutant concentration at the top of confined aquifer exceeds the highest allowable limit is defined as the confined aquifer vulnerability indicator. This process-based indicator is used to assess the confined aquifer vulnerability of Jining, China. In order to obtain confined aquifer vulnerability indicator, three-dimensional numerical simulation models of groundwater flow and solute transport are established by MODFLOW and MT3D respectively. Calibration and verification results, with correlation coefficient of 0.98 and 0.8, confirmed the reliability of numerical models which is then used to calculate the vulnerability indicator. Assessment results show that the confined aquifer in Shizhong District is the most vulnerable to pollutants and should be given more attention. As an alternative, the central and east part of the study area has the potential for exploitation. Further analysis reveals that both water head pressure difference and aquitard thickness have an important impact on the aquifer vulnerability. The vulnerability assessment map obtained by GIS shows the most vulnerable area is where the pollutant concentration increases most. Our proposed method provides the basis for confined groundwater environmental protection.

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Funding

This study is funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51979252) and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan) (CUGCJ1822).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China

    Xianmeng Meng, Yan Zhu & Maosheng Yin

  2. School of Water Resources and Hydropower, Xi’an University of Technology, Xi’an, 710048, China

    Dengfeng Liu

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  1. Xianmeng Meng
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  2. Yan Zhu
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  4. Maosheng Yin
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Correspondence to Xianmeng Meng.

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Responsible Editor: Broder J. Merkel

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Meng, X., Zhu, Y., Liu, D. et al. A process-based method for assessing confined aquifer vulnerability to pollutants in Jining, China. Arab J Geosci 14, 1305 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-021-07665-4

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