Different groundwater behaviour in deep karst boreholes: the case of Jadro spring basin (Dinaric karst, Croatia)


Submitted: 2 June 2023
Accepted: 28 August 2023
Published: 9 November 2023
Abstract Views: 399
PDF: 285
Publisher's note
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

Authors

The paper analyzes the data of groundwater level (GWL), groundwater temperature (TW), and electrical conductivity (EC) measurements in three deep piezometers (B1, B2, B3) in the Jadro spring basin, taken from October 2010 to December 2021. The variation of these parameters is analyzed at different time scales: annually, monthly, daily (24 hours), and hourly. They are compared with the data of the same parameters measured at the Jadro Spring. The analysis of the maximum observed rise and fall rates of the GWL showed that the piezometers were drilled in very different karst environments. Piezometer B1 is located in a karst matrix where the water flows predominantly in a diffuse laminar (slow-flow) regime. Piezometers B2 and B3 are located in a fault line where numerous large karst underground formations occur and rapid turbulent water flow takes place. The mean annual flows of the Jadro Spring strongly depend on the mean annual GWL-s in each of the piezometers. For much of the year (about 99%), the GWL in all three piezometers is more than 210 m below the ground surface. As the measuring sensors are located near the bottom of the piezometers, the groundwater temperature is almost stagnant. It is always at 12.5 ºC in piezometer B1 and behaves almost identically in piezometer B3. Water temperature is the highest in piezometer B2 and hovers around the average value of 13.5 ºC. At the Jadro Spring, the average water temperature is 12.95 ºC. The electrical conductivity values are the highest in piezometers B2 and B3, with an average of around 0.5 mS/cm. They are lower in piezometer B1, where they range around an average value of 0.465 mS/cm, while at the Jadro Spring, they vary from 0.40 mS/cm to 0.48 mS/cm, with an average value of 0.44 mS/cm. A distinct seasonal pattern in groundwater level behavior is evident across all piezometers. However, no discernible upward or downward trend is observed.


Atkinson TC (1977) Diffuse flow and conduit flow in limestone terrain in the Mendip Hills, Somerset (Great Britain). Journal of Hydrology 35(1):93–110. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1694(77)90079-8 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1694(77)90079-8

Bonacci O (1988) Piezometer – the main source of hydrologic information in the karst. Vodoprivreda 20(115):265-278

Bonacci O (1995) Ground water behaviour in karst: example of the Ombla Spring (Croatia). Journal of Hydrology 165(1-4):113-134. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1694(94)02577-X DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1694(94)02577-X

Bonacci O (2001) Analysis of the maximum discharge of karst springs. Hydrogeology Journal 9(4):328–338. https://doi.org/10.1007/s100400100142 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s100400100142

Bonacci O (2015) Karst hydrogeology/hydrology of Dinaric chain and Isles. Environmental Earth Sciences 74(1):37-55. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-014-3677-8 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-014-3677-8

Bonacci O, Roje-Bonacci T (2000) Interpretation of groundwater level monitoring results in karst aquifers: examples from the Dinaric karst. Hydrological Processes 14(14):2423-2438. https://doi.org/10.1002/1099-1085(20001015)14:14<2423::AIDHYP104>3.0.CO;2-2 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/1099-1085(20001015)14:14<2423::AID-HYP104>3.0.CO;2-2

Bonacci O, Roje-Bonacci T (2023) Analiza oduzimanja vode iz izvora Jadro u razdoblju 2010.-2021. Hrvatske Vode 31(123):1-9

Chalikakis K, Plagnes V, Guérin R, Valois R, Bosch FP (2011) Contribution of geophysical methods to karst-system exploration: An overview. Hydrogeology Journal 19(6):1169-1180. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10040-011-0746-x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10040-011-0746-x

Denić-Jukić V, Jukić D (2003) Composite transfer function for karst aquifers. Journal of Hydrology 274(1-4):80-94. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-1694(02)00393-1 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-1694(02)00393-1

Drogue C (1985) Geothermal gradients and ground water circulation in fissured and karstic rocks: The role played by the structure of the permeable network. Journal of Geodynamics 4(1-4):219-231. https://doi.org/10.1016/0264-3707(85)90061-4 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0264-3707(85)90061-4

Jalžić B, Kovač-Konrad P (2019) Izvor-špilja Jadro. Subterranea Croatica 17(1):26-33

Jukić D, Denić-Jukić V (2009) Groundwater balance estimation in karst by using a conceptual rainfall-runoff model. Journal of Hydrology 373(3-4):302-315. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2009.04.035 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2009.04.035

Kapelj S, Kapelj J, Švonja M (2012) Hidrogeološka obilježja sliva Jadro i Žrnovnice. Tusculum 5(1):205-216

Loborec J (2013) Procjena rizika od onečišćenja podzemnih voda u kršu na području sliva izvora Jadro i Žrnovnice. Rudarsko-geološko-naftni fakultet, Zagreb University, Zagreb (Graduation’s Disertation). https://urn.nsk.hr/urn:nbn:hr:169:812029. Accessed 20 March 2023

Lukač-Reberski J, Rubinić J, Terzić J, Radišić M (2020) Climate change impacts on groundwater resources in the coastal Karstic Adriatic area: a case study from the Dinaric Karst. Natural Resources Research 29(3):1975–1988. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11053-019-09558-6 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11053-019-09558-6

Lv C, Ling M, Wu Z, Gu P, Guo X, Di D (2019) Analysis of groundwater variation in the Jinci Spring area, Shanxi Province (China), under the influence of human activity. Environmental Geochemistry and Health 41(2):921–928. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-018-0189-6 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-018-0189-6

Paillet FL (1998) Flow modelling and permeability estimation using borehole flow logs in heterogeneous fractured formations. Water Resources Research 34(5):997-1010. https://doi.org/10.1029/98WR00268 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1029/98WR00268

Paillet FL (2001) Borehole geophysical applications in karst hydrogeology. US Geological Survey Karst Interest Group Proceedings. Water-Resources Investigations Report 01-4011:116–123

Pratama AD, Dwiputra DS, Nurkholis A, Haryono E, Cahyadi A, Agniy RF, Adji TN (2021) Factors affecting hydrochemistry of karst springs and their relationship to aquifer development. Environmental Processes 8(4):1379-1413. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40710-021-00547-7 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40710-021-00547-7

Bonacci, O., Roje-Bonacci, T., & Vrsalović, A. (2023). Different groundwater behaviour in deep karst boreholes: the case of Jadro spring basin (Dinaric karst, Croatia). Acque Sotterranee - Italian Journal of Groundwater, 12(4), 59–69. https://doi.org/10.7343/as-2022-682

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Citations