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Geochemical processes controlling the groundwater transport of contaminants released by a dump in an arid region of México

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Abstract

The Vado Carranza dump, located in the Mexicali Valley, Baja California, northwest Mexico, was operated for more than 15 years receiving about 30 tons/day of solid wastes. The disposed wastes were periodically burned in open air. The presence of a shallow aquifer in the area makes the groundwater vulnerable to contamination processes. The purpose of this study was the evaluation of heavy metals content (Cu, Cd, Ni, Pb and Zn) in soil and groundwater in the vicinity of this dump. The results indicate high content of metals in soil, mainly at a superficial level, with the highest concentrations in the areas where burning of wastes occurred. Elevated concentrations of cadmium and copper were detected in groundwater with the highest concentrations occurring in monitoring wells located in the north side of the dump, downward of groundwater flow. Although the high content of metals in soil can be attributed to the burning of waste, other sources of pollution could be the agricultural irrigation in the vicinity of the dump. The program PHREEQC was used to model the geochemical evolution of groundwater. Results suggest that evaporation of the contaminated waters circulating below the landfill is one of the key processes that explain the increased concentration of contaminants in groundwater and its seasonal variations. As groundwater flows away from the dump, evaporation can concentrate the chemicals making the water more toxic. These results are important because they illustrate processes that are likely to occur in landfills located in other desert areas of the world.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank National Council of Science and Technology (CONACYT) for financially supporting this research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Engineering Institute, Autonomous University of Baja California (UABC), Blvd. Bénito Juárez y Calle de La Normal s/n Col. Insurgentes, 21280, Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico

    Francisco J. Gómez-Puentes, Jaime A. Reyes-López & Concepción Carreón-Diazconti

  2. Technological Institute of Mexicali, Av. Instituto Tecnológico S/N, Col. Elías Calles, 21396, Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico

    Francisco J. Gómez-Puentes

  3. Department of Geological Sciences, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA

    Dina L. López

  4. Interdisciplinary Research Center for Regional Integral Development, National Polytechnic Institute, Oaxaca, Mexico

    Salvador Belmonte-Jiménez

Authors
  1. Francisco J. Gómez-Puentes
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  2. Jaime A. Reyes-López
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  3. Dina L. López
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  4. Concepción Carreón-Diazconti
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  5. Salvador Belmonte-Jiménez
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Correspondence to Jaime A. Reyes-López.

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Gómez-Puentes, F.J., Reyes-López, J.A., López, D.L. et al. Geochemical processes controlling the groundwater transport of contaminants released by a dump in an arid region of México. Environ Earth Sci 71, 609–621 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-013-2456-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-013-2456-2

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