The hydrogeology of the Condamine River Alluvial Aquifer, Australia: a critical assessment

Dafny, Elad; Silburn, D. M.

doi:10.1007/s10040-013-1075-z

Cited by 23 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…Dafny and Silburn (2014) reported that following the growing evidence of the feasibility of percolation through cracking clays, several recent studies have included a component of diffuse recharge in their assumptions or models of the Condamine River alluvial aquifer in Australia. This diffused recharge originates in deep drainage flowing through clay matrix and/or preferential paths.…”

Section: Preferential Flow Of Water In Vertisols -Evidence From the Lmentioning

confidence: 99%

Soil–aquifer phenomena affecting groundwater under vertisols: a review

Kurtzman

Baram

Dahan

2016

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. Vertisols are cracking clayey soils that (i) usually form in alluvial lowlands where, normally, groundwater pools into aquifers; (ii) have different types of voids (due to cracking), which make flow and transport of water, solutes and gas complex; and (iii) are regarded as fertile soils in many areas. The combination of these characteristics results in the unique soil-aquifer phenomena that are highlighted and summarized in this review. The review is divided into the following four sections: (1) soil cracks as preferential pathways for water and contaminants: in this section lysimeter-to basin-scale observations that show the significance of cracks as preferential-flow paths in vertisols, which bypass matrix blocks in the unsaturated zone, are summarized. Relatively fresh-water recharge and groundwater contamination from these fluxes and their modeling are reviewed; (2) soil cracks as deep evaporators and unsaturated-zone salinity: deep sediment samples under uncultivated vertisols in semiarid regions reveal a dry (immobile), saline matrix, partly due to enhanced evaporation through soil cracks. Observations of this phenomenon are compiled in this section and the mechanism of evapoconcentration due to air flow in the cracks is discussed; (3) impact of cultivation on flushing of the unsaturated zone and aquifer salinization: the third section examines studies reporting that land-use change of vertisols from native land to cropland promotes greater fluxes through the saline unsaturated-zone matrix, eventually flushing salts to the aquifer. Different degrees of salt flushing are assessed as well as aquifer salinization on different scales, and a comparison is made with aquifers under other soils; (4) relatively little nitrate contamination in aquifers under vertisols: in this section we turn the light on observations showing that aquifers under cultivated vertisols are somewhat resistant to groundwater contamination by nitrate (the major agriculturally related groundwater problem). Denitrification is probably the main mechanism supporting this resistance, whereas a certain degree of anion-exchange capacity may have a retarding effect as well.

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Section: Preferential Flow Of Water In Vertisols -Evidence From the Lmentioning

confidence: 99%

Soil–aquifer phenomena affecting groundwater under vertisols: a review

Kurtzman

Baram

Dahan

2016

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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“…The thickness of this layer varies between 30 m in some areas to completely absent in others. Thus, in some places the WCM 218 C. P. Iverach et al: Biogeochemical constraints on the origin of methane in an alluvial aquifer immediately underlies the CRAA (Dafny and Silburn, 2014). This suggests that there is some level of connectivity between the CRAA and the WCM.…”

Section: Hydrogeological Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The valley-filling sediments are composed of gravels and fine-to coursegrained channel sands interbedded with floodplain clays and, on the margins, colluvial deposits, which were deposited from the mid-Miocene to the present (Huxley, 1982;Kelly and Merrick, 2007;Dafny and Silburn, 2014). The valleyfilling sediments have a maximum thickness of 134 m near Dalby (Dafny and Silburn, 2014).…”

Section: Hydrogeological Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Along the eastern margin of the valley, the CRAA is bounded by the Main Range Volcanics. Estimations of the sources and quantity of recharge to the CRAA vary widely; however, streambed recharge is generally considered to be the major source of freshwater to the aquifer (Dafny and Silburn, 2014).…”

Section: Hydrogeological Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Aquifers in the GAB vary between semi-confined and confined (Kelly and Merrick, 2007;Dafny and Silburn, 2014).…”

Section: Hydrogeological Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Biogeochemical constraints on the origin of methane in an alluvial aquifer: evidence for the upward migration of methane from underlying coal measures

et al. 2017

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Abstract. Geochemical and microbiological indicators of methane (CH 4 ) production, oxidation and migration processes in groundwater are important to understand when attributing sources of gas. The processes controlling the natural occurrence of CH 4 in groundwater must be understood, especially when considering the potential impacts of the global expansion of coal seam gas (CSG) production on groundwater quality and quantity. We use geochemical and microbiological data, along with measurements of CH 4 isotopic composition (δ 13 C-CH 4 ), to determine the processes acting upon CH 4 in a freshwater alluvial aquifer that directly overlies coal measures targeted for CSG production in Australia. Measurements of CH 4 indicate that there is biogenic CH 4 in the aquifer; however, microbial data indicate that there are no methanogenic archaea in the groundwater. In addition, geochemical data, particularly the isotopes of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC), as well as the concentration of SO 2− 4 , indicate limited potential for methanogenesis in situ. Microbial community analysis also shows that aerobic oxidation of CH 4 occurs in the alluvial aquifer. The combination of microbiological and geochemical indicators suggests that the most likely source of CH 4 , where it was present in the freshwater aquifer, is the upward migration of CH 4 from the underlying coal measures.

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A conceptual framework for ecological responses to groundwater regime alteration (FERGRA)

et al. 2018

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Globally, the provision of groundwater‐supported ecosystem services is threatened by climate change, water extraction, and other activities that alter groundwater regimes (defined as temporal dynamics in groundwater pressures, storage, and levels). Research on how altered groundwater regimes affect the ecology and ecosystem services of diverse groundwater‐dependent ecosystems (GDEs) is currently fragmented with little integration across different GDEs, hampering our ability to understand and manage ecological responses to anthropogenic changes to groundwater regimes. To address this, we present a framework for assessing ecological responses to groundwater regime alteration (FERGRA). FERGRA is a logical approach to investigating how alterations to groundwater regimes change the timing, variability, duration, frequency, and magnitude of groundwater connections to different GDEs, in turn affecting their ecological processes and ecosystem service provision. Using FERGRA, multiple GDEs can be assessed concurrently, optimizing their integrated management. Unifying the concepts of ecological responses to altered groundwater regimes and groundwater connections of different GDEs across the landscape, FERGRA provides a framework for (a) organizing the currently fragmented research on GDEs to better identify commonalities and knowledge gaps, (b) formulating and testing hypotheses for quantifying ecological responses to groundwater regime alteration in GDEs to derive general principles to guide research and management, and (c) facilitating assessments of the trade‐offs between the benefits of groundwater extraction (e.g., to support mining and agriculture) versus conservation of GDEs to protect other ecosystem services.

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The hydrogeology of the Condamine River Alluvial Aquifer, Australia: a critical assessment

Cited by 23 publications

References 20 publications

Soil–aquifer phenomena affecting groundwater under vertisols: a review

Soil–aquifer phenomena affecting groundwater under vertisols: a review

Biogeochemical constraints on the origin of methane in an alluvial aquifer: evidence for the upward migration of methane from underlying coal measures

A conceptual framework for ecological responses to groundwater regime alteration (FERGRA)

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