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A multidisciplinary approach for delineating wastewater flow paths in shallow groundwater aquifers: A case study in the southeastern part of the Nile Delta, Egypt.
Abu Salem, Hend; Gemail, Khaled S; Nosair, Ahmed M.
Afiliación
  • Abu Salem H; Geology Department, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Egypt.
  • Gemail KS; Environmental Geophysics Lab (ZEGL), Geology Department, Faculty of Science, Zagazig University, Egypt. Electronic address: khaledgemail@zu.edu.eg.
  • Nosair AM; Environmental Geophysics Lab (ZEGL), Geology Department, Faculty of Science, Zagazig University, Egypt.
J Contam Hydrol ; 236: 103701, 2021 Jan.
Article en En | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-33183850
Groundwater pollution is a global issue in highly populated areas, the Eastern Nile Delta region is a typical example; especially around artificial wastewater drains. In the present work, a multidisciplinary approach using hydrogeochemical, geostatistical, microbiological and geophysical data was applied to determine the vulnerability conditions and to identify potential pathways through which contaminants could potentially percolate to shallow aquifers in the southern boundary of the Eastern Nile Delta. An organized groundwater sampling was conducted for hydrogeochemical investigation in rural areas along the Belbies unlined drain. This drain is known of being heavily polluted by agricultural and municipal wastewater. The hydrogeochemical analysis reveals high pollution levels by Pb, Cd, and Cr for most of the collected shallow groundwater samples nearby the drain. Additionally, NO3-, fecal and total coliform bacteria were observed in many samples with high concentrations. Six factors were distinguished on the basis of principal component analysis and varimax rotation, with total variance more than 78%. These factors reflected sewage contamination, lithogenic and anthropogenic effects on the shallow groundwater. Hierarchical cluster analysis revealed two main clusters of groundwater groups. Accordingly, Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) was carried out in the areas of the distinguished clusters to locate potential preferential flow paths and horizons of lateral flow around the drain. The obtained resistivity models illustrate breakthrough behavior in parts of the measured profiles due to the presence of permeable paths close to the drain. The applied integrative approach is valuable for understanding the ambiguities during the interpretation process and for characterizing water quality and the aquifer vulnerability conditions. Additionally, it may guide to understand the surface water-groundwater links in order to supply the growing population with safe water.
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Texto completo: 1 Colección: 01-internacional Base de datos: MEDLINE Asunto principal: Contaminantes Químicos del Agua / Agua Subterránea Tipo de estudio: Prognostic_studies País/Región como asunto: Africa Idioma: En Revista: J Contam Hydrol Asunto de la revista: TOXICOLOGIA Año: 2021 Tipo del documento: Article País de afiliación: Egipto Pais de publicación: Países Bajos

Texto completo: 1 Colección: 01-internacional Base de datos: MEDLINE Asunto principal: Contaminantes Químicos del Agua / Agua Subterránea Tipo de estudio: Prognostic_studies País/Región como asunto: Africa Idioma: En Revista: J Contam Hydrol Asunto de la revista: TOXICOLOGIA Año: 2021 Tipo del documento: Article País de afiliación: Egipto Pais de publicación: Países Bajos