Vulnerability to Aquifer Pollution in the Mexican Wine Producing Valley of Guadalupe, México

Groundwater pollution is one of the main challenges in our society, especially in semi-arid Mediterranean regions. This issue becomes especially critical in predominantly agricultural areas that lack comprehensive knowledge about the characteristics and functioning of their aquifer system. Vulnerabi...

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Main Authors: Guadalupe Díaz-Gutiérrez, Luis Walter Daesslé, Francisco José Del-Toro-Guerrero, Mariana Villada-Canela, Georges Seingier
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-01-01
Series:Hydrology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2306-5338/11/2/16
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author Guadalupe Díaz-Gutiérrez
Luis Walter Daesslé
Francisco José Del-Toro-Guerrero
Mariana Villada-Canela
Georges Seingier
author_facet Guadalupe Díaz-Gutiérrez
Luis Walter Daesslé
Francisco José Del-Toro-Guerrero
Mariana Villada-Canela
Georges Seingier
author_sort Guadalupe Díaz-Gutiérrez
collection DOAJ
description Groundwater pollution is one of the main challenges in our society, especially in semi-arid Mediterranean regions. This issue becomes especially critical in predominantly agricultural areas that lack comprehensive knowledge about the characteristics and functioning of their aquifer system. Vulnerability to groundwater pollution is defined as the sensitivity of the aquifer to being adversely affected by an imposed pollution load. For the Guadalupe aquifer, various indicators including water level depth, level variation, aquifer properties, soil composition, topography, impact on the vadose zone, and hydraulic conductivity were evaluated to establish spatial vulnerability categories ranging from very low to very high. Two pollution vulnerability scenarios (wet and dry) were studied. The results were compared with the analysis of nitrate concentration and distribution (2001, 2020, and 2021) from samples collected in the field. In the Calafia area, which predominantly relies on viticulture, the primary recharge inputs were identified in areas with a high vulnerability to pollution. Surprisingly, these vulnerable areas exhibited lower nitrate concentrations. This scenario underscores the need for effective management measures to safeguard aquifers in agricultural regions.
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spelling doaj.art-cdf4bc37b3bf4ae0b32b289870d9fcea2024-02-23T15:19:00ZengMDPI AGHydrology2306-53382024-01-011121610.3390/hydrology11020016Vulnerability to Aquifer Pollution in the Mexican Wine Producing Valley of Guadalupe, MéxicoGuadalupe Díaz-Gutiérrez0Luis Walter Daesslé1Francisco José Del-Toro-Guerrero2Mariana Villada-Canela3Georges Seingier4Instituto de Investigaciones Oceanológicas, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Carr. Transpeninsular 3917, Ensenada 22860, Baja California, MexicoInstituto de Ingeniería, Calle de la Normal, Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Baja California, MexicoInstituto de Investigaciones Oceanológicas, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Carr. Transpeninsular 3917, Ensenada 22860, Baja California, MexicoInstituto de Investigaciones Oceanológicas, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Carr. Transpeninsular 3917, Ensenada 22860, Baja California, MexicoFacultad de Ciencias Marinas, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Carr. Transpeninsular 3917, Ensenada 22860, Baja California, MexicoGroundwater pollution is one of the main challenges in our society, especially in semi-arid Mediterranean regions. This issue becomes especially critical in predominantly agricultural areas that lack comprehensive knowledge about the characteristics and functioning of their aquifer system. Vulnerability to groundwater pollution is defined as the sensitivity of the aquifer to being adversely affected by an imposed pollution load. For the Guadalupe aquifer, various indicators including water level depth, level variation, aquifer properties, soil composition, topography, impact on the vadose zone, and hydraulic conductivity were evaluated to establish spatial vulnerability categories ranging from very low to very high. Two pollution vulnerability scenarios (wet and dry) were studied. The results were compared with the analysis of nitrate concentration and distribution (2001, 2020, and 2021) from samples collected in the field. In the Calafia area, which predominantly relies on viticulture, the primary recharge inputs were identified in areas with a high vulnerability to pollution. Surprisingly, these vulnerable areas exhibited lower nitrate concentrations. This scenario underscores the need for effective management measures to safeguard aquifers in agricultural regions.https://www.mdpi.com/2306-5338/11/2/16vulnerability assessmentaquifernitrateGISDRASTICgeostatistics
spellingShingle Guadalupe Díaz-Gutiérrez
Luis Walter Daesslé
Francisco José Del-Toro-Guerrero
Mariana Villada-Canela
Georges Seingier
Vulnerability to Aquifer Pollution in the Mexican Wine Producing Valley of Guadalupe, México
Hydrology
vulnerability assessment
aquifer
nitrate
GIS
DRASTIC
geostatistics
title Vulnerability to Aquifer Pollution in the Mexican Wine Producing Valley of Guadalupe, México
title_full Vulnerability to Aquifer Pollution in the Mexican Wine Producing Valley of Guadalupe, México
title_fullStr Vulnerability to Aquifer Pollution in the Mexican Wine Producing Valley of Guadalupe, México
title_full_unstemmed Vulnerability to Aquifer Pollution in the Mexican Wine Producing Valley of Guadalupe, México
title_short Vulnerability to Aquifer Pollution in the Mexican Wine Producing Valley of Guadalupe, México
title_sort vulnerability to aquifer pollution in the mexican wine producing valley of guadalupe mexico
topic vulnerability assessment
aquifer
nitrate
GIS
DRASTIC
geostatistics
url https://www.mdpi.com/2306-5338/11/2/16
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