Cumulative effects of natural and anthropogenic processes on groundwater chemistry of a small karst island—case study of Vis (Croatia)
Abstract Many coastal and island communities depend on groundwater as the only source of freshwater, making it an invaluable resource. In the Mediterranean region, groundwater resources are highly vulnerable to natural and anthropogenic pressures, such as overexploitation, climate change, seasonal v...
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SpringerOpen
2024-09-01
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| Series: | Applied Water Science |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1007/s13201-024-02278-0 |
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| author | Matko Patekar Maja Briški Josip Terzić Zoran Nakić Staša Borović |
| author_facet | Matko Patekar Maja Briški Josip Terzić Zoran Nakić Staša Borović |
| author_sort | Matko Patekar |
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| description | Abstract Many coastal and island communities depend on groundwater as the only source of freshwater, making it an invaluable resource. In the Mediterranean region, groundwater resources are highly vulnerable to natural and anthropogenic pressures, such as overexploitation, climate change, seasonal variations in precipitation, and seawater intrusion. Hence, an understanding of hydrogeological processes and groundwater chemistry is a basis for the sustainable management of coastal and island groundwater resources. Vis, a small and remote karst island in the Adriatic Sea, exhibits peculiar geological and hydrogeological settings, resulting in the island’s autonomous water supply. The current pumping capacity (maximum of 42 l/s) meets most of the demand, but intensive summer tourism and climate change exert high stress on groundwater resources during the dry season. Consequently, in the last decade, occasional reductions for consumers occurred. Monitoring of in situ physicochemical parameters and groundwater sampling for chemical and isotopic analyses were conducted from 2020 to 2023 at deep borewells, shallow dug wells, and springs. Hydrochemical interpretation indicated that groundwater chemistry was affected primarily by carbonate and sulfate rock dissolution, mixing with seawater, reverse ion exchange, and dedolomitization. The majority of groundwater samples exhibit Ca–HCO3 hydrochemical facies, followed by Na–Cl and mixed facies. The low percentage of seawater in the mixture indicated that seawater intrusion is not too extensive even during prolonged dry periods, implying a favorable hydrostatic regime with relatively small but sufficient groundwater reserves of the island’s aquifers, although the investigated period was characterized by significantly lower precipitation with respect to the 30-year average. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-32beb05a4e814991bff7de65d767c509 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2190-5487 2190-5495 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-09-01 |
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| series | Applied Water Science |
| spelling | doaj-art-32beb05a4e814991bff7de65d767c5092025-08-20T02:17:46ZengSpringerOpenApplied Water Science2190-54872190-54952024-09-01141012410.1007/s13201-024-02278-0Cumulative effects of natural and anthropogenic processes on groundwater chemistry of a small karst island—case study of Vis (Croatia)Matko Patekar0Maja Briški1Josip Terzić2Zoran Nakić3Staša Borović4Department of Hydrogeology and Engineering Geology, Croatian Geological SurveyDepartment of Hydrogeology and Engineering Geology, Croatian Geological SurveyDepartment of Hydrogeology and Engineering Geology, Croatian Geological SurveyFaculty of Mining, Geology and Petroleum Engineering, Department of Geology and Geological Engineering, University of ZagrebDepartment of Hydrogeology and Engineering Geology, Croatian Geological SurveyAbstract Many coastal and island communities depend on groundwater as the only source of freshwater, making it an invaluable resource. In the Mediterranean region, groundwater resources are highly vulnerable to natural and anthropogenic pressures, such as overexploitation, climate change, seasonal variations in precipitation, and seawater intrusion. Hence, an understanding of hydrogeological processes and groundwater chemistry is a basis for the sustainable management of coastal and island groundwater resources. Vis, a small and remote karst island in the Adriatic Sea, exhibits peculiar geological and hydrogeological settings, resulting in the island’s autonomous water supply. The current pumping capacity (maximum of 42 l/s) meets most of the demand, but intensive summer tourism and climate change exert high stress on groundwater resources during the dry season. Consequently, in the last decade, occasional reductions for consumers occurred. Monitoring of in situ physicochemical parameters and groundwater sampling for chemical and isotopic analyses were conducted from 2020 to 2023 at deep borewells, shallow dug wells, and springs. Hydrochemical interpretation indicated that groundwater chemistry was affected primarily by carbonate and sulfate rock dissolution, mixing with seawater, reverse ion exchange, and dedolomitization. The majority of groundwater samples exhibit Ca–HCO3 hydrochemical facies, followed by Na–Cl and mixed facies. The low percentage of seawater in the mixture indicated that seawater intrusion is not too extensive even during prolonged dry periods, implying a favorable hydrostatic regime with relatively small but sufficient groundwater reserves of the island’s aquifers, although the investigated period was characterized by significantly lower precipitation with respect to the 30-year average.https://doi.org/10.1007/s13201-024-02278-0HydrogeologyIslandKarstGroundwater chemistrySeawater intrusion |
| spellingShingle | Matko Patekar Maja Briški Josip Terzić Zoran Nakić Staša Borović Cumulative effects of natural and anthropogenic processes on groundwater chemistry of a small karst island—case study of Vis (Croatia) Applied Water Science Hydrogeology Island Karst Groundwater chemistry Seawater intrusion |
| title | Cumulative effects of natural and anthropogenic processes on groundwater chemistry of a small karst island—case study of Vis (Croatia) |
| title_full | Cumulative effects of natural and anthropogenic processes on groundwater chemistry of a small karst island—case study of Vis (Croatia) |
| title_fullStr | Cumulative effects of natural and anthropogenic processes on groundwater chemistry of a small karst island—case study of Vis (Croatia) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Cumulative effects of natural and anthropogenic processes on groundwater chemistry of a small karst island—case study of Vis (Croatia) |
| title_short | Cumulative effects of natural and anthropogenic processes on groundwater chemistry of a small karst island—case study of Vis (Croatia) |
| title_sort | cumulative effects of natural and anthropogenic processes on groundwater chemistry of a small karst island case study of vis croatia |
| topic | Hydrogeology Island Karst Groundwater chemistry Seawater intrusion |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1007/s13201-024-02278-0 |
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