In 2004, the U.S. Geological Survey began working with engineers at the Afghanistan Geological Survey to provide hydrologic training and equipment and to apply these tools to build an inventory of water wells in the Kabul Basin of Afghanistan. An inventory of 148 wells now includes information on well location, depth, and access. Water-level and water-quality measurements have been made at most of these wells. A water-level elevation map has been constructed, and general directions of ground-water flow have been defined.
Ground-water flow in the Kabul Basin is primarily through saturated alluvium and other basin-fill sediments. The water-table surface generally mirrors topography, and ground water generally flows in the directions of surface-water discharge. The quality of ground water in the Kabul Basin varies widely. In some areas, ground-water quality is excellent, with low concentrations of dissolved solids and no problematic constituents. In other areas, however, high concentrations of dissolved solids and the presence of some constituents at concentrations deemed harmful to humans and crops render untreated ground water marginal or unsuitable for public supply and/or agricultural use. Of particular concern are elevated concentrations of nitrate, boron, and dissolved solids, and an indication of fecal pollution in some parts of the basin.
As Afghanistan emerges from years of conflict, as institutional capacities rejuvenate and grow, and as the need for wise water-management decisions continues, adequate data and a fuller understanding of the ground-water resource in the Kabul Basin will be imperative. The work described in this report represents only a modest beginning in what will be a long-term data-collection and interpretive effort.
Abstract
Introduction
Acknowledgments
Description of the Study Area
Geographic Setting
Climate
Geologic Framework
Previous Hydrogeologic Investigations
Methods
Ground-Water Flow in the Kabul Basin
Ground-Water Quality of the Kabul Basin
Dissolved Solids, Specific Conductance, and Major Ion Chemistry
Oxidation-Reduction (Redox) Conditions
Nitrate
Bacteria
Sodium Adsorption Ratio
Boron
Further Considerations for Ground-Water Use as Public Drinking Water
Suggestions for Further Work
Summary
References Cited
Suggested Citation:
Broshears, R.E., Chornack, M.P., Mueller, D.K., and Ruddy, B.C., 2005, Inventory of ground-water resources in the Kabul Basin, Afghanistan: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2005-5090, 34 p.
This report is available online in Portable Document Format (PDF). If you do not have the Adobe Acrobat PDF Reader, it is available for free download from Adobe Systems Incorporated.
Download the Report (PDF, 18.3MB).
Download spreadsheet (XLS, 115KB) of the data collected in this investigation.
Document Accessibility: Adobe Systems Incorporated has information about PDFs and the visually impaired. This information provides tools to help make PDF files accessible. These tools convert Adobe PDF documents into HTML or ASCII text, which then can be read by a number of common screen-reading programs that synthesize text as audible speech. In addition, an accessible version of Acrobat Reader 5.0 for Windows (English only), which contains support for screen readers, is available. These tools and the accessible reader may be obtained free from Adobe at Adobe Access.
Send questions or comments about this report to the author, R.E. Broshears (303) 445-4605.
| AccessibilityFOIAPrivacyPolicies and Notices | |
  |
|