Preferential groundwater seepage in karst terrane inferred from geoelectric measurements
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- Data Release: USGS data release - 650-m Profiles of Self-Potential, Contact Resistance, and Electric Resistance Tomography Measurements Adjacent to Hamilton Creek, Burnet County, Texas, July 2017 - January 2018
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Abstract
The Ellenburger–San Saba aquifer discharges spring flows into the overlying Hamilton Creek bed in Burnet County, central Texas. The aquifer is susceptible to contamination from surface‐water reservoirs because of the presence of dissolution cavities that are hydraulically connected to the reservoirs in some locations. There is concern that preferential groundwater seepage from reservoirs into the aquifer in these locations might ultimately degrade the quality of the springwater that enters Hamilton Creek. To investigate preferential groundwater seepage patterns and hydraulic connectivity between surface‐water reservoirs and the Ellenburger–San Saba aquifer, geophysical reconnaissance surveys were completed between July 2017 and January 2018 to map dissolution cavities and locate preferential groundwater seepage within a specific region of the aquifer. Two‐dimensional electric resistivity tomography and self‐potential profiling were utilized, and a simplified, three‐dimensional finite‐element model of the field site was constructed to provide an interpretive aid. The self‐potential data indicated the occurrence of preferential groundwater seepage through a porous seepage conduit that was imaged by the electric resistivity tomography data but did not indicate the occurrence of groundwater seepage through two fluid‐filled dissolution cavities that were imaged by electric resistivity tomography data. Collectively, the surveying and modelling results demonstrate the efficacy of geoelectric methods for mapping the locations of dissolution cavities and preferential groundwater seepage in the electrically resistive karst terrane of the Ellenburger–San Saba aquifer.
Publication type | Article |
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Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
Title | Preferential groundwater seepage in karst terrane inferred from geoelectric measurements |
Series title | Near Surface Geophysics |
DOI | 10.1002/nsg.12023 |
Volume | 17 |
Issue | 1 |
Year Published | 2019 |
Language | English |
Publisher | Wiley |
Contributing office(s) | Texas Water Science Center |
Description | 11 p. |
First page | 43 |
Last page | 53 |
Google Analytic Metrics | Metrics page |