Publication

Applying the Principal Component Analysis for a deeper understanding of the groundwater system: case study of the Bacchiglione Basin (Veneto, Italy)

Andrea Rinaldo
2022
Article
Résumé

In hydrogeology, it is often difficult to fully understand the hydraulic factors affecting the recharge of groundwater systems. Particularly, at a regional scale, the groundwater system can have different drivers depending on the considered area, i.e., soil permeability, paleochannels, and precipitation. Chemical physical (i.e. temperature) or hydrogeochemical data can help such understanding. However, this type of information is usually sparse at the regional scale, whereas extended groundwater piezometric head monitoring is more common. This study aims at exploiting these longitudinal observations of the hydraulic head to validate (and possibly bring more insights into) the geological structural model of aquifer systems. Clustering control points based on the piezometric head average annual variations can help the system conceptualization in two ways: (i) clusters can geographically identify areas with similar hydrogeological behavior; and (ii) the typical cluster annual variation with its ups and downs can bring insights on the recharge component of an aquifer system. Nevertheless, visual clustering can be a long and subjective procedure, thus this study suggests the use of the Principal Component Analysis to cluster the control points with a similar average annual variation of their recorded time series. This study supports the proposed analysis by applying it to the monitoring data of the Bacchiglione basin resulting in (i) clusters identified based on the number, moment, and lengths of groundwater level peaks and minima, (ii) well gathered clusters in space, underpinning the groundwater hydrograph dependence on local driving factors. Furthermore, the investigation of clustering anomalies highlighted the relevance of the presence of time series with different recording periods pinpointing, however, the method???s capacity to spot a change in the hydrogeological cycle over the years.

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Concepts associés (35)
Eau souterraine
vignette|LŒil du Néez (Rébénacq, Pyrénées-Atlantiques) est une émergence karstique captée par la ville de Pau. Les eaux souterraines sont toutes les eaux se trouvant sous la surface du sol, dans la zone de saturation et en contact direct avec le sol ou le sous-sol. En tant que ressource naturelle vitale et plus ou moins renouvelable et parfois transfrontalières, ces eaux posent des questions juridiques particulières. C'est parfois une source de conflit inter ethnique ou entre pays.
Groundwater pollution
Groundwater pollution (also called groundwater contamination) occurs when pollutants are released to the ground and make their way into groundwater. This type of water pollution can also occur naturally due to the presence of a minor and unwanted constituent, contaminant, or impurity in the groundwater, in which case it is more likely referred to as contamination rather than pollution.
Recharge des aquifères
La recharge des aquifères ou infiltration résulte naturellement d'un processus hydrologique par lequel les eaux de surface percolent à travers le sol et s'accumulent sur le premier horizon imperméable rencontré (banc d'argile ou de marne) ; elle peut aussi être assurée artificiellement par des puits filtrants. Ce processus s'amorce généralement à partir de la zone vadose, sous la pédosphère où les racines des végétaux captent encore l'essentiel de l'eau interstitielle.
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