See more from this Division: Gulf Coast Association of Geological Societies
See more from this Session: Environmental Geology I and Hydrology
Abstract:
This study found that the common practice of using soil properties to predict recharge rates is potentially unreliable, especially in arid climates. These recharge rate predictions are unreliable because infiltration rate measurements are often based on fully saturated soils which rarely occur naturally in arid climates. This results in a gross over-estimation of recharge rates.
Groundwater isotopic compositions in the Pecos Valley Aquifer provide information about the source and spatial distribution of recharge to the aquifer. The isotopes analyzed as part of this study are stable hydrogen, oxygen, and carbon, as well as carbon-14 and tritium. These groundwater isotopes indicate that in some parts of the alluvial basin, recharge water is locally-derived and infiltrates throughout the basin through playas. In other parts of the basin, recharge water is derived from adjacent mountains and recharge occurs along the margins of the basin from intermittent streams.
See more from this Division: Gulf Coast Association of Geological Societies
See more from this Session: Environmental Geology I and Hydrology