Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Degradation of groundwater quality in the coastal aquifers of the USA

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Sustainable Water Resources Management Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The objective of this study is to analyze groundwater types and the extent of seawater intrusion in terms of ion concentrations in groundwater sample using USGS monitoring wells. Groundwater quality indices [fsea, GQI (dom), GQI (mix), GQI (swi)] were used to estimate the spatial distributions of groundwater types in the US coastal aquifers. Results showed that the dominating groundwater chemistry in the study area was Na+ and Cl−. Results also indicated that seawater intrusion of groundwater occurred in the US coastal aquifers. Based on the results of GQI (mix) and GQI (dom), most of the wells fell under domain II in the Piper diagram, indicating that they were of the Na–Cl water type. Na–Cl and mixed Ca–Mg–Cl were determined to be the two dominant groundwater types in the coastal aquifers of the US seawater intrusion evident in the Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties of Florida, the San Diego and Santa Barbara areas of California, and within Virginia and New Jersey on the east coast. As the sea level continues to rise further inland, Na–Cl concentration in groundwater will increase, particularly in aquifers along low-lying coasts.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abarca E, Clement TP (2009) A novel approach for characterizing the mixing zone of a saltwater wedge. Geophys Res Lett 36:L06402

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Alley WM, Reilly TE, Franke OL (1999) Sustainability of groundwater resources, vol 1186. US Department of the Interior, US Geological Survey, Reston

    Google Scholar 

  • Appelo CAJ, Postma D (2005) Geochemistry, groundwater and pollution. CRC Press, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Arslan H, Cemek B, Demir Y (2012) Determination of seawater intrusion via hydro-chemicals and isotopes in Bafra Plain. Turk Water Resour Manag 26(13):3907–3922

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ataie-Ashtiani B, Volker RE, Lockington DA (1999) Tidal effects on sea water intrusion in unconfined aquifers. J Hydrol 216:17–31

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Back W, Freeze RA (1983) Chemical hydrogeology. Benchmark papers in geology. Hutchinson Ross, Stroudsburg

    Google Scholar 

  • Bakari SS, Aagaard P, Vogt RD, Ruden F, Johansen I, Vuai SA (2012) Delineation of groundwater provenance in a coastal aquifer using statistical and isotopic methods. Southeast Tanzan Environ Earth Sci 66(3):889–902

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bakker M (2006) Analytic solutions for interface flow in combined confined and semi-confined, coastal aquifers. Adv Water Resour 29:417–425

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barlow PM, Reichard EG (2010) Saltwater intrusion in coastal regions of North America. Hydrogeol J 18(1):247–260

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barlow PM, Wild EC (2002) Bibliography on the occurrence and intrusion of saltwater in aquifers along the Atlantic coast of the United States. US Geological Survey Open-File Report 02-235

  • Boufadel MC (2000) A mechanistic study of nonlinear solute transporting a groundwater-surface water system under steady state and transient hydraulic conditions. Water Resour Res 36:2549–2565

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brankovits D, Pohlman J, Niemann H, Leigh MB, Leewis MC, Becker KW, Iliffe TM, Alvarez F, Lehmann MF, Phillips B (2017) Methane- and dissolved organic carbon-fueled microbial loop supports a tropical subterranean estuary ecosystem. Nat Commun 8:1–12

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • California Department of Water Resources (CA DWR) (2013a) California water plan update central coast hydrologic region. California Department of Water Resources. Regional reports, vol 2

  • California Department of Water Resources (CA DWR) (2013b) California water plan update north coast hydrologic region. California Department of Water Resources. Regional reports, vol 2

  • California Department of Water Resources (CA DWR) (2013c) California water plan update San Francisco Bay hydrologic region. California Department of Water Resources. Regional reports, vol 2

  • California Department of Water Resources (CA DWR) (2013d) California water plan update south coast hydrologic region. California Department of Water Resources. Regional reports, vol 2

  • California Department of Water Resources (CA DWR) (1958) Seawater intrusion in California. Bulletin 63. California Department of Water Resources, Sacramento

  • Capaccioni B, Didero M, Paletta C, Didero L (2005) Saline intrusion and refreshening in a multilayer coastal aquifer in the Catania Plain (Sicily, Southern Italy): dynamics of degradation processes according to the hydrochemical characteristics of groundwaters. J Hydrol 307:1–16

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cardona A, Calrrillo-Rivera J, Huizar-Alvarez R, Graniel-Castro E (2004) Salinization in coastal aquifers of arid zones: an example from Santo Domingo, Baja California Sur. Mexico Environ Geol 45(3):50–366

    Google Scholar 

  • Carretero S, Rapaglia J, Bokuniewicz H, Kruse E (2013) Impact of sea-level rise on saltwater intrusion length into the coastal aquifer, Partido de La Costa, Argentina. Cont Shelf Res 62:62–70

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cheng AH, Halhal D, Naji D, Ouazar D (2000) Pumping optimization in saltwater-intruded coastal aquifers. Water Resour Res 36:2155–2165

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cooper H, Kohout F, Henry H. Glover R (1964) Sea water in coastal aquifers. U.S. Geological Survey Water-Supply paper 1613-C

  • Crossett KM, Culliton TJ, Wiley PC, Goodspeed TR (2004) Coastal trends report series: population trends along the coastal United States: 1980–2008. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Coastal trends report series

  • Dagan G, Zeitoun DG (1998) Seawater-freshwater interface in a stratified aquifer of random permeability distribution. J Contam Hydrol 29:185–203

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dale MRT, Fortin M (2002) Spatial autocorrelation and statistical tests in ecology. Écoscience 9(2):162–167

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dausman A, Langevin CD (2005) Movement of the saltwater interface in the surficial aquifer system in response to hydrologic stresses and water-management practices, Broward County, Florida. U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations report 2004-5256. U.S. Geological Survey

  • Döll P (2009) Vulnerability to the impact of climate change on renewable ground-water resources: a global-scale assessment. Environ Res Lett 4:1–12

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eamus D, Fu B, Springer AE, Stevens LE (2016) Groundwater dependent ecosystems: classification, identification techniques and threats. In: Jakeman Barreteau O, Hunt RJ, Rinaudo JD, Ross A (eds) Integrated groundwater management. Springer, Cham

    Google Scholar 

  • Eissa MA, Dreuzy JR, Parker B (2018) Integrative management of saltwater intrusion in poorly constrained semi-arid coastal aquifer at Ras El-Hekma, Northwestern Coast, Egypt. Groundw Sustain Dev 6:57–70

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Elewa HH, Shohaib RE, Qaddah AA, Nousir AM (2013) Determining groundwater protection zones for the Quaternary aquifer of northeastern Nile Delta using GIS-based vulnerability mapping. Environ Earth Sci 68:313–331

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fadili A, Mehdi K, Riss J, Najib S, Makan A, Boutayab K (2015) Evaluation of groundwater mineralization processes and seawater intrusion extension in the coastal aquifer of Oualidia, Morocco: hydro-chemical and geophysical approach. Arab J Geosci 8(10):8567–8582

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fatoric S, Chelleri L (2012) Vulnerability to the effects of climate change and adaptation: the case of the Spanish Ebro Delta Ocean. Coast Manag 60:1–10

    Google Scholar 

  • Freeze RA, Cherry JA (1979) Groundwater. Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River

    Google Scholar 

  • Giambastiani BM, Antonellini M, Essink GHO, Stuurman RJ (2007) Saltwater intrusion in the unconfined coastal aquifer of Ravenna (Italy): a numerical model. J Hydrol 340:91–104

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Herbert ER, Boon P, Burgin AJ, Neubauer SC, Franklin RB, Ardón M, Hopfensperger KN, Lamers LPM, Gell P (2015) A global perspective on wetland salinization: ecological consequences of a growing threat to freshwater wetlands. Ecosphere 6(10):1–43

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Huang B, Jiang B, Li H (2001) An integration of GIS, virtual reality and the Internet for visualization, analysis and exploration of spatial data. Int J Geogr Inf Sci 15:439–456

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Huizer S, Radermacher M, de Vries S, Oude Essink GHP, Bierkens MFP (2018) Impact of coastal forcing and groundwater recharge on the growth of a fresh groundwater lens in a mega-scale beach nourishment. Hydrol Earth Syst Sci 22:1065–1080

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Isaaks E, Srivastava R (1989) An introduction to applied geostatistics. Oxford University Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Jones B, Vengosh A, Rosenthal E, Yechieli Y (1999) Geochemical investigations. Seawater intrusion in coastal aquifers-concepts, methods and practices. Springer, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Kerrou J, Renard P, Cornaton F, Perrochet P (2013) Stochastic forecasts of seawater intrusion towards sustainable groundwater management: application to the Korba aquifer (Tunisia). Hydrogeol J 21:425–440

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kitsiou D, Coccossis H, Karydis M (2002) Multi-dimensional evaluation and ranking of coastal areas using GIS and multiple-criteria choice methods. Sci Total Environ 284:1–17

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kitsiou D, Patera A, Kostopoulou M (2018) A GIS methodology to support seawater quality assessment in coastal areas. Glob Nest J 20(1):122–127

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kumari MKN, Sakai K, Kimura S, Nakamura S, Yuge K, Gunarathna MHJP, Ranagalge M, Duminda DMS (2018) Interpolation methods for groundwater quality assessment in tank cascade landscape: a study of Ulagalla cascade, Sri Lanka. Appl Ecol Environ Res 16(5):5359–5380

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li HY, Webster RZ, Shi Z (2015) Mapping soil salinity in the Yangtze delta: REML and universal kriging (E-BLUP). Geoderma 237–238:71–77

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lu CH, Chen YM, Zhang C, Luo J (2013) Steady-state freshwater-seawater mixing zone in stratified coastal aquifers. J Hydrol 505:24–34

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mahlknecht J et al (2017) Assessing seawater intrusion in an arid coastal aquifer under high anthropogenic influence using major constituents, Sr and B isot. Sci Total Environ 587–588:282–295

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mantoglou A (2003) Pumping management of coastal aquifers using analytical models of saltwater intrusion. Water Resour Res 39(12):1335

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maupin MA, Barber NL (2005) Estimated withdrawals from principal aquifers in the United States. U.S. Geological Survey, Reston

    Google Scholar 

  • Maupin MA, Kenny JF, Hutson SS, Lovelace JK, Barber NL, Linsey KS (2014) Estimated use of water in the United States in 2010. US Geol Surv Circ 1405:64

    Google Scholar 

  • Miller JA (1986) Hydrogeologic framework of the Floridan aquifer system in Florida and in parts of Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina. US Geological Survey Professional Paper 1403-B

  • Misut PE, Voss CI (2007) Freshwater-saltwater transition zone movement during aquifer storage and recovery cycles in Brooklyn and Queens, New York City, USA. J Hydrol 337:87–103

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morris BL, Lawrence ARL, Chilton PJC, Adams B, Calow RC, Klinck BA (2003) Groundwater and its susceptibility to degradation: a global assessment of the problem of options for management. Early warning and assessment report series, RS. 03-3. United Nations Environment Programme, Nairobi, Kenya

  • Moujabber ME, Samra BB, Darwish T, Atallah T (2006) Comparison of different indicators for groundwater contamination by seawater intrusion on the Lebanese coast. Water Resour Manag 20(2):161–180

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Narany TS, Ramli MF, Zaharin Aris A, Azmin Sulaiman WN, Juahir H, Fakharian K (2014) Identification of the hydrogeochemical processes in groundwater using classic integrated geochemical methods and geostatistical techniques, in Amol-Babol Plain, Iran. Sci World J

  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Accessed 6 May 2018. https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/OC5/WOA09/woa09.pl

  • Neumann B, Vafeidis AT, Zimmermann J, Nicholls RJ (2015) Future coastal population growth and exposure to sea-level rise and coastal flooding—a global assessment. PLoS ONE 10(3):e0118571

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nordbotten JM, Celia MA (2006) An improved analytical solution for interface upconing around a well. Water Resour Res 42:W08433

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pande CB, Moharir K (2018) Spatial analysis of groundwater quality mapping in hard rock area in the Akola and Buldhana districts of Maharashtra, India. Appl Water Sci 8(4):106

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Park N, Cui L, Shi L (2009) Analytical design curves to maximize pumping or minimize injection in coastal aquifers. Ground Water 47:797–880

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Peters NE, Meybeck M (2000) Water quality degradation effects on freshwater availability: impacts of human activities. Water Int 25(2):185–193

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Petersen-Perlman JD, Megdal SB (2018) Decentralized groundwater governance and water nexus implications in the United States. Jurimetrics 59:99–119

    Google Scholar 

  • Piper AM (1944) A graphic procedure in the geochemical interpretation of water analyses. Am Geophys Union Trans 25:914–928

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Poisson A, Papaud A (1983) Diffusion coefficients of major ions in seawater. Mar Chem 13(4):265–280

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pool M, Post VEA, Simmons CT (2014) Effects of tidal fluctuations and spatial heterogeneity on mixing and spreading in spatially heterogeneous coastal aquifers. Water Resour Res 51:1570–1585

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Price RM, Swart PK (2006) Geochemical indicators of groundwater recharge in the surficial aquifer system: Everglades National Park, Florida, USA. Spec Pap Geol Soc Am 404:251

    Google Scholar 

  • Purwoarminta A, Moosdorf N, Delinom RM (2018) IOP conference on series: earth and environmental science 118

  • Raicy MC, Parimala Renganayaki S, Brindha K, Elango L (2012) Mitigation of seawater intrusion by managed aquifer recharge. In: Managed aquifer recharge. methods, hydrogeological requirements, pre and post treatment systems, pp 83–99

  • Rajaee T, Nourani V, Pouraslan F (2016) Groundwater level forecasting using wavelet and kriging. J Hydraul Struct 2(2):1–21

    Google Scholar 

  • Renken RA, Cunningham KJ, Shapiro AM, Harvey RW, Zygnerski MR, Metge DW, Wacker MA (2008) Pathogen and chemical transport in the karst limestone of the Biscayne aquifer: 1. Revised conceptualization of groundwater flow. Water Resour Res 44:399–416

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rhoades JD, Kandiah A, Mashali A (1992) The use of saline waters for crop production FAO

  • Richter BC, Kreitler CW (1993) Geochemical techniques for identifying sources of groundwater salinization. CRC Press, Boca Raton

    Google Scholar 

  • Riva M, Guadagnini A, Dell’Oca A (2018) Probabilistic assessment of seawater intrusion under multiple sources of uncertainty. Adv Water Resour 75:93–104

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sarath Prasanth S, Magesh N, Jitheshlal K, Chandrasekar N, Gangadhar K (2012) Evaluation of groundwater quality and its suitability for drinking and agricultural use in the coastal stretch of Alappuzha district, Kerala, India. Appl Water Sci 2(3):165–175

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sherif MM, Singh VP (1999) Effect of climate change on seawater intrusion in coastal aquifers. Hydrol Process 13:1277–1287

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Singhal B, Gupta RP (2010) Applied hydrogeology of fractured rocks. Springer, Netherlands

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Somay MA, Gemici Ü (2009) Assessment of the salinization process at the coastal area with hydrogeochemical tools and geographical information systems (GIS): Selçuk plain, Izmir, Turkey. Water Air Soil Pollut 201:55–74

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strack ODL (1976) A single-potential solution for regional interface problems in coastal aquifers. Water Resour Res 12:1165–1174

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taniguchi M, Burnett WC, Cable JE, Turner JV (2002) Investigation of submarine groundwater discharge. Hydrol Process 16:2115–2129

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tiwari AK, Pisciotta A, De Maio M (2019) Evaluation of groundwater salinization and pollution level on Favignana Island, Italy. Environ Pollut 249:969–981

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Todd DK (2001) Groundwater hydrology. Wiley, Canada

    Google Scholar 

  • Tomaszkiewicz M, Abou Najm M, El-Fadel M (2014) Development of groundwater quality index for seawater intrusion in coastal aquifers. Environ Model Softw 57:13–26

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Trabelsi R, Zairi M, Dhia HB (2007) Groundwater salinization of the Sfax superficial aquifer, Tunisia. Hydrogeol J 15:1341–1355

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (1995) Drinking water regulations and health advisories. Office of Water, Washington

    Google Scholar 

  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (2017) Water face sheet. Water Sense EPA

  • U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) 2005. National Field Manual for the Collection of Water-Quality Data. Accessed 15 June 2019. https://water.usgs.gov/owq/FieldManual/compiled/NFM_complete.pdf

  • U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) (2014) Origins and delineation of saltwater intrusion in the biscayne aquifer and changes in the distribution of saltwater in Miami-Dade County, Florida

  • U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) (2016a) Groundwater quality report. Accessed 7 June 2018.https://pubs.usgs.gov/wri/wri024045/htms/report2.htm

  • U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) (2016b) Groundwater availability report. Accessed 8 Aug 2018. https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/item/5661981ae4b06a3ea36c56fc

  • U.S. Census Bureau (2015) Coastal areas. Accessed 12 Aug 2018. https://www.census.gov/topics/preparedness/about/coastal-areas.html

  • Werner AD, Bakker M, Post VEA, Vandenbohede A, Lu C, Ataie-Ashtiani B, Simmons CT, Barry DA (2013) Seawater intrusion processes, investigation and management: recent advances and future challenges. Adv Water Resour 51:3–26

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Werner AD, Gallagher MR (2006) Characterization of seawater intrusion in the Pioneer Valley, Australia using hydrochemistry and three-dimensional numerical modelling. Hydrogeol J 14:1452–1469

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wu J, Wang L, Wang S, Tian R, Xue C, Feng W, Li Y (2017) Spatiotemporal variation of groundwater quality in an arid area experiencing long-term paper wastewater irrigation. Northwest China Environ Earth Sci 76(13):460

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang E, Savenije H, Wu H, Kong Y, Zhu J (2011) Analytical solution for salt intrusion in the Yangtze Estuary, China, Estuarine. Coast Shelf Sci 91:492–501

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, USA

    Aynaz Lotfata

  2. Department of Geosciences, Mississippi State University, Starkville, MS, USA

    Shrinidhi Ambinakudige

Authors
  1. Aynaz Lotfata
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Shrinidhi Ambinakudige
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Aynaz Lotfata.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Lotfata, A., Ambinakudige, S. Degradation of groundwater quality in the coastal aquifers of the USA. Sustain. Water Resour. Manag. 6, 41 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40899-020-00403-w

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40899-020-00403-w

Keywords

Search

Navigation