Contamination of the Groundwater Environment
Dr. Roger Saint-Fort *
Department of Environmental Science, Mount Royal University, Calgary, AB T3E 6K6, Canada.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Groundwater systems are vital to global ecological stability and socio-economic development, yet subsurface contamination presents a critical challenge to managing safe water resources. This book provides a comprehensive analysis of contaminant transport hydrology, beginning with surface infiltration from precipitation and irrigation waters that drive aquifer recharge. It details how transient fluxes in hydraulic gradients govern the vertical, gravity-driven leaching of solutes through the vadose zone. Upon reaching the water table, the subsequent fate and transport of these contaminants within the saturated aquifer are driven by advective-dispersive mechanisms and complex biogeochemical attenuation processes. Over time, these migrating chemical species organize into distinct plumes whose geometry, trajectory, and temporal duration are dictated by the initial source loading conditions and hydrodynamic gradients. To address these challenges, the book outlines advanced methodological and technical frameworks for site characterization, encompassing lithology, hydrogeology, contaminant speciation, and receptor risk assessment. Finally, it establishes robust methodologies for designing remediation strategies, emphasizing the critical prerequisite of removing free-phase liquids, including light nonaqueous phase liquids (LNAPLs) and dense nonaqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs), to ensure long-term aquifer restoration.
Keywords: Groundwater, Contaminant hydrology, Vadose zone hydrology, Subsurface fate and transport, Groundwater properties, Plume characterization, Hydrogeochemistry, Risk assessment, Groundwater remediation techniques