Groundwater quality: Responsible agriculture and public perceptions

The chief sources of groundwater contamination on farms come from point sources and diffuse sources. Possible point sources are feedlots, poorly-sited manure piles, septic sewage-treatment systems—all of which can release nitrate, phosphates and bacteria— and sites of chemical spills. Diffuse sources are typified by excess fertilizer leaching from a number of arable fields. The basis of quality standards for drinking-water is discussed in relation to common contaminants present on farms. Samples of drinking-water were collected in 1991–1992 from wells on about 1,200 farms in order to study the quality of rural groundwater in Ontario. Analysis showed that approximately one third of wells were contaminated with bacteria, 14% were contaminated with nitrate, two wells were contaminated with pesticide, but 40% were considered unsafe because of the presence of at least one contaminant. These values were similar to those reported for similar regions in the U.S. There was no significant effect of agricultural practice on the proportion of contaminated samples. One response of Ontario's farmers to information on water quality has been to initiate their own program, the Environmental Farm Plan, which has 23 modules by which the risk of environmental contamination can be assessed. Government policies for agriculture can be expected to influence farming practices. However, the literature suggests that the consequences of policies aimed at reducing environmental contamination are poorly understood, not least because the instruments used for implementation can have widely differing impacts. The need for discussions on the ethics surrounding the relationship between food producers and consumers with regard to environmental contamination is identified.     

An appraisal of subsurface geology and groundwater resources of Owerri and environs based on electrical resistivity survey and borehole data evaluation

The research was aimed at determining the depth to the watertable, aquifer thickness and subsurface geology of the studyarea thus revealing its groundwater distribution as well as its potential as a substitute to the surface water resources.Vertical electrical soundings were carried out in the study area with maximum electrode spread. The Schlumberger electrode configuration technique was adopted. VES data were processedusing Schlumberger analysis package. Lithologic logs of alreadyexisting boreholes in the study area were collected, evaluatedand comparison were carried out. The results reveal alternatinglayers of sands, sandstones, gravel and clay. The lithologiclogs revealed that the study area is underlain by coastal sands (Benin formation). The water table varies from 10–64 m and thickness of the aquifer ranges from 20–80 m. Results show that the study area is underlain by a thick extensive aquifer that has a transmissivity of 2.8 × 10^-2m² s^-1 to 3.3 × 10^-1m² s^-1 and storativity 1.44 × 10^-4 to 1.68 × 10^-3m s^-1 values. The specific yield is about 0.31.The sandy component of the study area forms more than 90% ofthe sequence, therefore the permeability, the transmissivity andthe storage coefficient are high with an excellent source of groundwater resources.     

Nitrate leaching in agriculture to upper groundwater in the sandy regions of the Netherlands during the 1992–1995 period

The Dutch National Monitoring Programme for Effectiveness of the Minerals Policy (LMM) was initiated to allow detection of a statutory reduction in nitrate leaching caused by a decreasing N load. The starting point, or baseline, was taken as the nitrate concentration of the upper metre of groundwater sampled on 99 farms in the 1992–1995 period in the sandy areas of the Netherlands, where predominantly grass and maize grow. We found here that a reduction in nitrate leaching of more than 20% in future would almost certainly be detected with the LMM. Detecting downward trends due to decreasing N load will require nitrate concentrations to also be related to soil drainage, precipitation excess leading to groundwater recharge and to location. Furthermore, we found that about 16% of the N load in the Dutch sandy regions was being leached to the upper metre of groundwater in the 1992–1995 period. The critical N load in approximately 1990 for exceeding the EC limit value for nitrate, NO₃, (50 mg L^–1) in the upper metre of groundwater for the mean situation for grassland, maize and arable land in the sandy area was found to be 210 kg ha^–1 a^–1. Because manure management has been altered, the critical load found will be lower than the current critical load .     

Water Environmental Degradation of the Heihe River Basin in Arid Northwestern China

Water environmental degradation is a major issue in the Heihe River Basin belonging to the inland river basin of temperate arid zone in northwestern China. Mankind’s activities, such as dense population and heavy dependence on irrigated agriculture, place immense pressure on available and limited water resources during the last century, especially the recent five decades. An investigation on the water environmental degradation in the Heihe River Basin and analysis of its causation were conducted. The results indicated that water environmental changes in the whole basin were tremendous mostly in the middle reaches, which reflected in surface water runoff change, decline of groundwater table and degeneration of surface water and groundwater quality. Some new forms of management based on traditional and scientific knowledge must be introduced to solve problems of water environmental degradation in the Heihe River Basin.     

Techniques of remote sensing applied to the environmental analysis of part of an aquifer located in the São José dos Campos Region sp,Brazil

The anthropogenic activity on the surface can modify and introduce new mechanisms of recharging the groundwatersystem, modifying the tax, the frequency and the quality ofrecharge of underground waters. The understanding of thesemechanisms and the correct evaluation of such modifications arefundamental in determining the vulnerability of groundwatercontamination. The groundwater flow of the South ParaíbaCompartment, in the region of São José dos Campos, São Paulo, is directly related to structural features of theTaubaté Basin and, therefore, the analysis of its behaviourenhances the understanding of tectonic structure. The methodologyadopted for this work consists in pre-processing and processing of the satellite images, visual interpretation of HSI products, field work and data integration. The derivation of the main structural features was based on visual analysis of the textureelements of drainage, and the relief in sedimentary and crystalline rocks. Statistical analysis of the feature densitiesand the metric-geometric relations between the analysed elementshave been conducted. The crystalline rocks, on which the sediments were laying, conditions and controls the structural arrangement of sedimentary formations. The formation of the SouthParaíba Grabén is associated with Cenozoic distensive movement which reactivated old features of crust weakness and generated previous cycles with normal characteristics. The environmental analysis is based on the integration of the existing methodology to characterise vulnerability of an universal pollutant and density fracture zone. The digital integration was processed using GIS (Geographic Information System) to delineate five defined vulnerability classes. The hydrogeological settings were analysed in each thematic map and,using fuzzy logic, an index for each different vulnerability class was compiled. Evidence maps could be combined in a seriesof steps using map algebra.     

BTEX在乙醇汽油和传统汽油污染地下水中的衰减行为对比

地下燃油储藏罐泄漏造成苯、甲苯、乙苯和二甲苯（BTEX）影响生态环境和公众健康的问题一直备受关注,随着乙醇汽油的推广使用,乙醇对BTEX修复策略的影响成为需要重视的新问题.为揭示乙醇汽油污染地下水中BTEX的衰减行为,本文通过室内两个独立砂槽投注实验和近3年的监测,对比了乙醇汽油和传统汽油中BTEX自然衰减和基于硫酸盐-硝酸盐补充的增强生物修复行为.结果表明,传统汽油BTEX自然衰减较快,乙醇汽油BTEX自然衰减较慢,一级衰减速率常数分别为0.0055~0.0329 d^-1和0.0045~0.0124 d^-1;苯衰减最快,其次为甲苯.补充硫酸盐和硝酸盐能促进生物修复,单独补充硫酸盐时其利用率为89.7%~92.9%,同时补充硝酸盐时硫酸盐利用被抑制,硝酸盐利用率为79.9%~87.2%.水位波动会促进BTEX溶解和迁移,增大质量通量.乙醇汽油不仅能消耗更多电子受体,使得BTEX衰减被抑制,而且可能会扩大水位波动引起的增溶效应.     

内蒙古新巴尔虎右旗高氟水分布特征及成因分析

高氟地下水是广泛分布于我国北方干旱半干旱地区的一种典型劣质水源,长期饮用会对人体造成严重的危害。本文以内蒙古呼伦贝尔典型高氟水地区为研究范围,对新巴尔虎右旗地区地下水、地表水水质分析结果进行统计分析、水化学类型、因子分析等方面的研究。结果表明,本区地下水F-含量普遍超标,氟离子平均含量为2. 24 mg/L,极值达6 mg/L。高氟水在空间上多分布于侏罗系火山岩及花岗岩地区的基岩裂隙水中,水化学类型以HCO_3-Ca·Na为主。综合分析研究区气候、水文、地质等条件,本文认为自然因素在研究区高氟水的成因中占主要因素,人为因素影响较小,蒸发浓缩作用和岩氟淋滤作用是地下水氟离子富集的主要机制。     

Transition Pathways to Sustainable Agricultural Water Management: A Review of Integrated Modeling Approaches

Agricultural water management (AWM) is an interdisciplinary concern, cutting across traditional domains such as agronomy, climatology, geology, economics, and sociology. Each of these disciplines has developed numerous process‐based and empirical models for AWM. However, models that simulate all major hydrologic, water quality, and crop growth processes in agricultural systems are still lacking. As computers become more powerful, more researchers are choosing to integrate existing models to account for these major processes rather than building new cross‐disciplinary models. Model integration carries the hope that, as in a real system, the sum of the model will be greater than the parts. However, models based upon simplified and unrealistic assumptions of physical or empirical processes can generate misleading results which are not useful for informing policy. In this article, we use literature and case studies from the High Plains Aquifer and Southeastern United States regions to elucidate the challenges and opportunities associated with integrated modeling for AWM and recommend conditions in which to use integrated models. Additionally, we examine the potential contributions of integrated modeling to AWM — the actual practice of conserving water while maximizing productivity. Editor's note : This paper is part of the featured series on Optimizing Ogallala Aquifer Water Use to Sustain Food Systems. See the February 2019 issue for the introduction and background to the series.     

不同pH条件下三氯乙烯及其脱氯产物对苯或甲苯厌氧生物降解的影响

将零价铁渗透反应格栅和生物降解格栅联用,先利用氯代烃易还原脱氯的性质通过零价铁渗透反应格栅去除氯代烃,后利用BTEX易生物降解的性质通过生物降解格栅去除BTEX,可以有效去除地下水中由氯代烃和BTEX这两种性质迥异的污染物形成的混合污染羽.但在联合格栅技术中,零价铁渗透反应格栅后的强碱性环境(pH9)、氯代烃脱氯还原中间产物(cis-1,2-DCE)的积累和可能出现的TCE穿透均可对生物降解格栅中BTEX的生物降解产生影响.针对上述问题,本文研究了不同pH条件下TCE和cis-1,2-DCE对苯或甲苯厌氧生物降解的影响.结果发现,碱性pH条件有利于苯或甲苯的生物降解,但不同pH条件下TCE或cis-1,2-DCE的加入对苯或甲苯的生物降解均产生抑制(除pH=7.9,cis-1,2-DCE=100μg·L-1时的甲苯),且TCE对苯和甲苯生物降解的抑制要明显强于cis-1,2-DCE;不同pH条件下,TCE 100和500μg·L-1对苯生物降解的抑制作用没有明显差异,但对甲苯生物降解的抑制却随着TCE浓度的增加而增加;pH=7.9时,cis-1,2-DCE的加入有利于甲苯的生物降解,之后随着pH的增加又转变为抑制.另外,在苯或甲苯厌氧生物降解过程中,可能存在cis-1,2-DCE与苯或甲苯的共代谢生物降解,且甲苯更有利于cis-1,2-DCE的共代谢降解.     

工业项目地下水污染监测井布设方案的定量化研究

工业成品生产过程中各类装置所产生的污染源严重威胁着工业建设项目厂区及其周边地下水环境安全,对工业项目厂区及其周边地下水水质进行有效的监测则成为防控地下水污染风险的关键。以某石化项目为例,基于对研究区水文地质条件的剖析和概化,通过野外水文地质调查及现场试验获取水文地质参数,利用FEFLOW数值模拟软件建立研究区地下水三维非稳定渗流模型和溶质运移模型,分析预测设定工况下污染物随地下水的迁移规律,实现了地下水污染监测井布设方案在时间和空间尺度上的定量化分析,并提出了合理且有效的监控管理措施,可为工业项目地下水监测井的精细化布设提供参考。