Author(s)

Karina Pamoukaghlian^1*, Elena Alvareda^2*, Mariano Cáceres³, Rebeca Panzl¹, Marcelo Aboy¹, Sofìa Da Rocha², Pablo Gamazo², María Paula Collazo¹

¹Instituto de Ciencias Geológicas, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay.
²Departamento del Agua, Centro Universitario Regional Litoral Norte, Universidad de la República, Salto, Uruguay.
³Área Toxicología, Departamento Estrella Campos, Facultad de Química, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay.

The water scarcity in quality and quantity is becoming more noticeable and an urgent concern around the world. In Uruguay, these issues become exacerbated by the need to obtain drinking water in coastal areas, influenced by the climate change. Basic and structural geologies are strong conditioners in heterogeneous coastal aquifers. The objective of this study is to characterize the hydrochemistry of the fractured aquifers after having identified the main bearing fractures and the causes of aleatoreous water scarcity and quality problems, for hydric resources sustainable management. Identification of water bearing fracture, hydrogeochemical analysis and water quality evaluation are specific objectives. Some strategies were performed: 1) a base map in QGIS Software; 2) fracture photointerpretation; 3) geological correlation; 4) statistical analysis of the background geochemistry data; 5) ions analysis of strategically located wells. There were found water bearing fractures corresponding to 28 m³/h maximum flow rate for the NW-SE and 12 m³/h maximum flow rate for the NE-SW fracture direction, respectively. Besides, there could be a problem related to the high Sodium (Na) and Chloride (Cl) levels. In this respect, having previous data from 25 well samples, ions geochemical analysis has been carried out for 14 wells from Costa Azul and surrounding to have a first approach about the possible cause for the high values of Na (max. 385 mg/L) and Cl (max. 381 mg/L). The selected area for this study has a particular characteristic, because it corresponds to a heterogeneous fractured aquifer, which makes it difficult to catch water with enough flow rates and water quality to meet the population demand.

Water Bearing Fractures, Hydrogeochemistry, Water Quality, Sustainable Management

Pamoukaghlian, K., Alvareda, E., Cáceres, M., Panzl, R., Aboy, M., Rocha, S. D., Gamazo, P. and Collazo, M. P. (2024) Hydrogeochemical Studies in Drought Scenarios: Canelones, Uruguay Case Study. Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection, 12, 188-217. doi: 10.4236/gep.2024.125012.