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Tracer tests, hydrochemical and microbiological investigations as a basis for groundwater protection in a remote tropical mountainous karst area, Vietnam

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Abstract

The Tam Duong karst area in NW Vietnam is among the poorest and remotest regions in the country. The local population largely depends on water from two main karst springs. Due to agricultural activity and untreated domestic wastewaters, the spring water is often microbiologically contaminated. In order to provide a scientific basis for groundwater protection in the area, different field methods have been applied including hydrogeological framework investigations, tracer tests, and hydrochemical and microbiological sampling and analyses. All methods had to be adapted to the conditions of a poor and remote area. These adaptations included, amongst other measures, the use of a portable microbiological water_testing kit and the involvement of the local population in the sampling campaign. The tracer tests showed simple and direct connections between two important swallow holes and the two main springs, and made it possible to determine the linear groundwater flow velocities, which are extremely high (up to 875 m/h). The hydrochemical and microbiological data confirmed the strong impact of the streams sinking into the swallow holes on the spring water quality. Future groundwater source protection strategies should consequently focus on the reduction of polluting activities near the sinking streams and within their catchment areas.

Resumen

El área kárstica Tam Duong al noroeste de Vietnam se encuentra entre las más pobres y remotas del país. La población local depende fuertemente del agua de dos manantiales kársticos principales. El agua del manantial se contamina frecuentemente con microbios por la extensa actividad agrícola y la descarga de aguas residuales domésticas sin ningún tratamiento. Para aportar bases científicas en la protección del agua subterránea del área se han aplicado diferentes métodos de campo incluyendo investigaciones del marco hidrogeológico, pruebas con trazadores, muestreo y análisis microbiológico e hidroquímico. Todos los métodos tuvieron que adaptarse a las condiciones pobres y remotas del área. Estas adaptaciones incluye, entre otras medidas, el uso de un kit manual de evaluación microbiológica del agua y el involucramiento de la población local en la campaña de muestreo. Las pruebas con trazadores mostraron una conexión directa y simple entre dos pozos someros importantes y los dos manantiales principales, haciendo posible determinar las velocidades lineares de flujo de agua subterránea las cuales fueron bastante altas (hasta 875 m/h). Los datos hidroquímicos y microbiológicos confirman el impacto fuerte de los arroyos hundidos en los pozos someros y en la calidad de agua del manantial. Las estrategias futuras de protección de agua subterránea deberían por lo tanto enfocarse en la reducción de actividades contaminantes cerca de los arroyos hundidos y dentro de sus áreas de drenaje.

Résumé

La zone karstique de Tam Duong, au NO du Vietnam, fait partie des régions les plus pauvres et les plus reculées du pays. La population locale est largement dépendante de l’eau provenant de deux principales sources karstiques. En raison de la variété des activités agricoles et des eaux usées domestiques non traitées, l’eau de source subit souvent une contamination microbiologique. Afin de fournir une base scientifique pour la protection de l’eau souterraine dans cette zone, différentes méthodes de terrain ont été appliquées comprenant des investigations de base en hydrogéologie, des essais de traçage ainsi qu’un échantillonnage et des analyses hydrochimiques et microbiologiques. Toutes ces méthodes ont dû être adaptées aux conditions de cette zone pauvre et reculée. Ces adaptations ont inclus, parmi d’autres mesures, l’utilisation d’un kit portatif pour la microbiologie de l’eau et la participation de la population locale à la campagne d’échantillonnage. Les essais de traçage ont montré les connections simples et directes entre deux importantes pertes et les deux sources principales, et ils ont rendu possible la détermination des vitesses d’écoulement de l’eau souterraine, qui sont extrêmement élevées (jusqu’à 875 m/h). Les données hydrochimiques et microbiologiques ont confirmé le fort impact des cours d’eau plongeant dans les pertes sur la qualité de l’eau de source. En conséquence, les futures stratégies de protection de l’eau souterraine devraient se concentrer sur la réduction des activités polluantes à proximité des ruisseaux qui s’infiltrent et à l’intérieur du bassin versant.

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Acknowledgements

The Swiss Federal Commission for Foreign Students and the Belgian Technical Cooperation financially supported this study. We thank the Directorial Board of the Research Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources (RIGMR) for logistic support. We thank Prof. Duong Duc Kiem and other researchers at the RIGMR for useful discussions, and Dang My Cung for his assistance in the field; a special thanks to the local people and army division for the sampling. We are gratefully to Prof. Daniel Hunkeler, Dr. Raymond Flynn, Prof. François Zwahlen and other researchers at the CHYN for fruitful discussions and useful advices. We thank Marie-Eve Wyniger for her help in the laboratory. We thank Dr. Okke Batelaan, Prof. Florimond De Smedt (Free University of Brussels) and other members of the VIBEKAP project for their friendly support, and David Drew (Trinity College, Dublin) for the final language check.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Hydrology and Hydraulic Engineering, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium

    Vu Thi Minh Nguyet

  2. Research Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources (RIGMR), Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Km 9 Nguyen Trai, Thanh Xuan, Hanoi, Vietnam

    Vu Thi Minh Nguyet

  3. Centre of Hydrogeology (CHYN), University of Neuchâtel, Rue Emile-Argand 11 – CP 158, 2009, Neuchâtel, Switzerland

    Nico Goldscheider

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  1. Vu Thi Minh Nguyet
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Correspondence to Nico Goldscheider.

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Nguyet, V.T.M., Goldscheider, N. Tracer tests, hydrochemical and microbiological investigations as a basis for groundwater protection in a remote tropical mountainous karst area, Vietnam. Hydrogeol J 14, 1147–1159 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10040-006-0038-z

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