Large areas of the Po Valley proximal to the delta show serious problems related to salinization of the superficial aquifers which are vital for the sustainability of the agricultural activities in the area. Since 2012 the EU life WARBO project activities regards the application of integrated direct and indirect technologies aiming at the monitoring of the possibility to enhance ground water quality in two test sits. One test site is located few km’s to the south of the Po River and about 40 km on-shore the western margin of the Adriatic Sea, Northern Italy. In this area, the artificial recharge shall be initiated by flooding an existing lake formed after the termination of pre-existing quarry. Subsurface geological and hydrogeological model of this test site have been constructed based on through analysis of existing information about surface and subsurface lithology. These were integrated by the acquisition of new geophysical data employing surface and borehole geoelectromagnetic and seismic techniques. The geophysical results helped in the definition of the hydrogeological conceptual model. This model, together with the geochemical data, aided in the definition of the possible interactions between surface and ground water bodies. Moreover, the outcomes of the integrated analyses helped in the optimization of the monitoring network. One of the expected results of this project is to succeed in diluting the high salinity of fossil ground water whose presence, surely, contrasts the natural recharge from the Po River. This may be possible by accumulating fresh water in the existing lake. Monitoring activities shall aide in defining the rate of salinization attenuation in aquifers characterized by modest to low average permeability. Understanding the advantages and drawbacks of artificial recharge activities shall help in defining its usefulness or its applicability in other sites having similar characteristics.
Multidisciplinary geophysical - geochemical analysis for qualitative renovation by artificial recharge of aquifers (WARBO LIFE)
ABU-ZEID, Nasser;PEPI, Salvatore;RUSSO, Sabrina;VACCARO, Carmela
2013
Abstract
Large areas of the Po Valley proximal to the delta show serious problems related to salinization of the superficial aquifers which are vital for the sustainability of the agricultural activities in the area. Since 2012 the EU life WARBO project activities regards the application of integrated direct and indirect technologies aiming at the monitoring of the possibility to enhance ground water quality in two test sits. One test site is located few km’s to the south of the Po River and about 40 km on-shore the western margin of the Adriatic Sea, Northern Italy. In this area, the artificial recharge shall be initiated by flooding an existing lake formed after the termination of pre-existing quarry. Subsurface geological and hydrogeological model of this test site have been constructed based on through analysis of existing information about surface and subsurface lithology. These were integrated by the acquisition of new geophysical data employing surface and borehole geoelectromagnetic and seismic techniques. The geophysical results helped in the definition of the hydrogeological conceptual model. This model, together with the geochemical data, aided in the definition of the possible interactions between surface and ground water bodies. Moreover, the outcomes of the integrated analyses helped in the optimization of the monitoring network. One of the expected results of this project is to succeed in diluting the high salinity of fossil ground water whose presence, surely, contrasts the natural recharge from the Po River. This may be possible by accumulating fresh water in the existing lake. Monitoring activities shall aide in defining the rate of salinization attenuation in aquifers characterized by modest to low average permeability. Understanding the advantages and drawbacks of artificial recharge activities shall help in defining its usefulness or its applicability in other sites having similar characteristics.I documenti in SFERA sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
