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Paleochannel groundwater discharge to the River Niger in the Iullemmeden Basin estimated by near- surface geophysics and piezometry

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Abstract

In drylands, groundwater is often the only perennial source of freshwater to sustain domestic water supplies and irrigation. Knowledge of the pathways and dynamics of groundwater discharge and recharge is, therefore, essential to inform sustainable and rational management of limited water resources. The lower valley of the Dallol Maouri in Niger represents a large fossil tributary (i.e. paleochannel) of the River Niger and drains groundwater regionally from the Iullemmeden Basin through coarse-grained Quaternary sediments. The objective of this paper is to quantify groundwater discharge within this paleochannel using piezometry and near-surface geophysics (TDEM: Time Domain Electromagnetics, MRS: Magnetic Resonance Sounding). TDEM and MRS experiments, conducted at 21 sites along 3 transects, show the thickness of the saturated Quaternary alluvium varies from 7 to 19 m with  estimated effective porosities ranging from 18 to 38% and a hydraulic conductivity of 0.6–3 ×  10–3 m/s. Dense piezometric surveys along drainage channel reveal hydraulic gradients of 0.2–0.3‰ that generate Darcy fluxes of 1000–2000 m3/day (dry season, i.e. minimum value). Paleochannel discharge, which currently provides baseflow to the River Niger, is the focus of local demand to increase access to water for drinking, livestock watering, and supplementary irrigation.

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The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

This study was conducted with the support of grants under the GroFutures (www.grofutures.org) project (refs. NE/M008576/1, NE/M008932/1) from the UK government’s NERC-ESRC-DFID UPGro programme. We would also like to thank « l’Institut de Géosciences et de l’Environnement (IGE) » for lending us the NUMIS Lite to supplement our soundings. Thanks are also expressed  to Mr. Issa Taweye (IRD Staff, Niamey) for his assistance in the field.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Département de Géologie, Université Abdou Moumouni de Niamey, Niamey, Niger

    Rabilou Abdou Mahaman, Yahaya Nazoumou, Boukari Issoufou Ousmane & Marie Boucher

  2. Univ. Grenoble Alpes, IRD, CNRS, Grenoble INP, IGE, 38000, Grenoble, France

    Guillaume Favreau, Marie Boucher, Jean-Michel Vouillamoz & Anatoly Legchenko

  3. Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD), 276 Avenue de Maradi, BP 11416, Niamey, Niger

    Guillaume Favreau

  4. Département de Géologie, Faculté des Sciences et Techniques, UMR SERMUG, Université Dan Dicko Dan Koulodo de Maradi, Maradi, Niger

    Maman Sani Abdou Babaye

  5. National Institude of Water, University of Abomey Calavi, Cotonou, Benin

    Fabrice M. A. Lawson

  6. Niger Basin Authority, 288 rue du Fleuve Niger, BP 729, Niamey, Niger

    Abdou Guéro

  7. Department of Geography, University College London, London, UK

    Richard Graham Taylor

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  1. Rabilou Abdou Mahaman
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  2. Yahaya Nazoumou
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Abdou Mahaman, R., Nazoumou, Y., Favreau, G. et al. Paleochannel groundwater discharge to the River Niger in the Iullemmeden Basin estimated by near- surface geophysics and piezometry. Environ Earth Sci 82, 202 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-023-10861-y

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