Vulnerability and protection aspects of some Dinaric karst aquifers: a synthesis

Ravbar, Nataša; Kovačič, Gregor

doi:10.1007/s12665-014-3945-7

Cited by 11 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…Many sites along the Adriatic and Ionian coasts are severely affected by seawater intrusion phenomena. This particularly occurs in low topography karst areas and in peninsulas, such as in Salento, southern Apulia (Tulipano 2003;Cotecchia 2014;Masciopinto and Liso 2016;D'Angeli et al 2021), in Slovenia and Croatia (Ravbar and Kovacic 2015), in Greece (Kalioras and Marinos 2015), and in Turkey (Bayari et al 2011;Günay et al 2015).…”

Section: Hydrogeologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Typology and hydrogeochemistry of karst springs in the southern coast of Albania

Eftimi¹,

Liso²,

Parise³

2022

Preprint

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The southern Albania coast, about 147 km-long, represents one of the most developing areas of the country for tourism and local economy. There are, however, serious problems as concerns water supply. Due to the karst nature of the territory, groundwater is the only remaining promising resource. The aim of this research is to describe the main characteristics and influencing factors on karst groundwater quantity and quality and the drainage type in the study area. In general, the area is very rich on groundwater resources; the estimated total renewable karst water resources are about 21.5 m3/s. Based upon the different geological-structural conditions and the development of karst processes, their drainage occurs in different ways. Five main types of drainage can be distinguished along the Southern Albanian coast: a) overflowing springs, b) descending springs, c) coastal springs, d) submarine spring, and e) diffuse drainage. As regards water quality, only the overflowing springs have a good quality, due to the presence of impervious rocks isolating freshwater from the sea water. Good-quality springs represent 28% of the total discharge of karst water resources drained to the Adriatic and Ionian Seas. In addition, the situation become more difficult because about 83% of fresh quality karst water resources drain along a 1.5 km-long coastal strip located in the northernmost sector of the studied area. Beside this, the strong increase in population, particularly during the summer due to tourism activities, as well as construction of new urban areas, are the main sources of likely pollution for some of the good-quality springs. The high anthropic pressure on groundwater resources increases the seawater intrusion phenomena, reducing the available freshwater resource and, at specific areas, contributing to spring salinization.

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Section: Hydrogeologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Typology and hydrogeochemistry of karst springs in the southern coast of Albania

Eftimi¹,

Liso²,

Parise³

2022

Preprint

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“…Karst aquifers are carbonate rocks with channels and fissures of different sizes, which are capable of storing relatively large quantities of groundwater due to high rock porosity. They can be easily contaminated by human activities and surface pollution (at least in Slovenia; Ravbar, 2007;Ravbar & Kovačič, 2015), as the carbonate bedrock is usually covered only by a thin layer of soil, water drains ra pidly through numerous channels and fissures, and point recharge of water occurs through sinkholes (Ford & Williams, 2007;White, 2019). Consequently, pollutants can be translocated rapidly and deeply into the underground (Vižintin et al, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microplastic pollution in vulnerable karst environments: case study from the Slovenian classical karst region

Kozel

Valentić

2022

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Since the start of mass production of plastic materials more than a century ago, the problem of accumulating plastic waste in the environment has reached epic proportions. Recently, the problem of smaller plastic particles (microplastic, MP) in the environment has become a widely studied topic, but the amount and types of MP in karst environments are still poorly known. Thus, the objective of this study was to collect and analyse samples from various karst habitats and to try and determine the scope of pollution in karst springs that are in part used as sources for drinking water. Of the potential pollution sources, we sampled rainwater, two discharges from wastewater treatment plants, and a leachate from a landfill. We conducted polymer analyses of potential MP particles using FTIR-ATR. The results showed that eight samples from the Postojna region (Postojna–Planina Cave System, rainfall sample and surface streams) contain up to 444 MP particles per m3. However, 32 samples taken from the Škocjan–Kačna–Jama 1 v Kanjaducah Cave System contain up to 60,000 MP particles per m3, with the bulk of particles found in the sediment samples from Škocjan Caves – Kačna Cave System. Samples from Postojna region contained mostly PET, PU and PA polymers, with a minor inclusion of polymers of plastic sponge used for cleaning. Samples from Škocjan region contained mostly PP, PET and PE polymers, with some of PA and PU polymers. Sediment samples contained much less MP particles compared to water samples, which indicates fast transport through karst aquifer.

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“…Nowadays, the anthropogenic stress that karst aquifers around the world are experiencing is undeniable. Pollution generated by agricultural practices, cattle raising, wastewater disposal, and dumping sites, among others, have already affected karst groundwater quality in some regions (Parise et al, 2004;Pronk et al, 2007;Ravbar and Kovacic, 2015). On the other hand, large well fields, with considerable water extraction volumes, can diverge groundwater flow from its natural course.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

First application of the Integrated Karst Aquifer Vulnerability (IKAV) method – potential and actual vulnerability in Yucatán, Mexico

Moreno-Gómez

Martínez‐Salvador

Stefan

2022

Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. Groundwater vulnerability maps are important decision support tools for water resource protection against pollution and helpful in minimizing environmental damage. However, these tools carry a high subjectivity along the multiple steps taken for the development of such maps. Additionally, the theoretical model on which they are based does not consider other important parameters, such as pollutant concentration or pollutant residence time in a given section of the aquifer, solely focusing on the theoretical travel time of a pollutant particle from a release point towards a target. In this work, an integrated methodology for the evaluation of potential (intrinsic) and actual vulnerability is presented. This integrated method, named Integrated Karst Aquifer Vulnerability (IKAV), was developed after the analysis of several study cases around the world and the application of multiple intrinsic groundwater vulnerability methods in a selected study area. Also, a solute transport model served as the basis to define additional parameters for vulnerability analysis for areas severely affected by anthropogenic practices. However, the focus of the transport model must not be mistaken to be hazards and risk mapping. A defined workflow and several criteria for parameters and attributes selection, rating and weighting, and vulnerability classification are presented here. The first application of the IKAV method was carried out in the Yucatán karst, demonstrating to be a reliable method for vulnerability estimation. Results demonstrated the scope of the IKAV method in highlighting important regional conditions, minimizing the subjectivity, and expanding the analysis of vulnerability.

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Vulnerability and protection aspects of some Dinaric karst aquifers: a synthesis

Cited by 11 publications

References 42 publications

Typology and hydrogeochemistry of karst springs in the southern coast of Albania

Typology and hydrogeochemistry of karst springs in the southern coast of Albania

Microplastic pollution in vulnerable karst environments: case study from the Slovenian classical karst region

First application of the Integrated Karst Aquifer Vulnerability (IKAV) method – potential and actual vulnerability in Yucatán, Mexico

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