Assessment of groundwater volumes and quality suitability for different uses

Abstract

Groundwater resources have a great potential to satisfy human needs. In each case of study, volumes and water quality are essential aspects to be evaluated. The objective of this work is to assess the hydrogeological and geochemical aspects of the unconfined aquifer of the Campus of the National University of Rio Cuarto and its surroundings to determine groundwater reserves and the groundwater quality for irrigation, cattle and human consumption. The results show that there is an important geochemical homogeneity in the studied area and all the water samples are fresh (<600 uS/cm), most of calcium bicarbonate type. All the analyzed chemical variables show low values and do not surpass the established guidelines for human consumption, irrigation and cattle uses. There is an encouraging scenario with regard to the available groundwater volume. Considering that the aquifer is made up by coarse fluvial sediments and has high hydraulic conductivity and specific porosity, the estimated Regular and Total Reserves are plentiful. Only the regular reserves are enough to supply water to the different activities in the Campus (personnel, garden irrigation and experimental tasks). Also the unconfined aquifer shows an important rate of water annual replenishment from precipitations (20-28%), a very promising situation to the maintenance of groundwater reserves.