Groundwater Pollution, Aquifer Recharge and Vulnerability

Book excerpt: The primary groundwater management issue in many countries today is pollution. This may derive from a point source, perhaps a leaking solvent store at a factory, or it may be diffuse, such as the threat posed by the use of agricultural fertilisers and pesticides. The key to understanding the transport of a pollutant from the ground surface or near surface into an aquifer is an understanding of recharge. In turn, this allows the vulnerability of aquifers to pollution to be classified and appropriate land zones to be defined. Land zonation of different classes of aquifer vulnerability is a valuable tool for management and planning. In this volume the recent developments within the interlinked areas of groundwater pollution, aquifer recharge and vulnerability are set against the current groundwater protection policies of the UK amd Republic Ireland.