Journal
HYDROGEOLOGY JOURNAL
Volume 20, Issue 8, Pages 1483-1495Publisher
SPRINGER
DOI: 10.1007/s10040-012-0891-x
Keywords
Lake; USA; Geophysical methods; Continuous resistivity profiling; Groundwater/surface-water relations
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Funding
- National Science Foundation [EAR-0609982]
- Big XII Faculty Fellowship
- Geology Foundation at the University of Texas at Austin
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Lake-groundwater interactions exhibit a complex three-dimensional (3D) structure that is seldom studied. The utility of waterborne electrical resistivity (ER) surveys is explored for characterization of 3D groundwater flow and solute transport patterns for three lakes in the Nebraska Sand Hills, USA. Waterborne ER surveys, using contrasts between lake and groundwater solutes as natural tracers, are useful for inferring 3D patterns of groundwater flow and solute transport as well as classifying groundwater-lake interactions. Three unique groundwater flow systems are interpreted under each lake from dense networks of two-dimensional (2D) waterborne ER surveys. A lateral transition from high to low ER values beneath the saline Wilson Lake expresses its flow-through regime, where groundwater salinity indicates changes from groundwater inflow to outflow. Alkali Lake ER profiles reveal a prevalent ER increase with depth over the lakebed area that is characteristic of groundwater discharge lakes. ER profiles beneath Gimlet Lake are the most resistive and indicate pockets of high ER related to fresh groundwater discharge into the lake, supporting a flow-through regime with a short flushing time. These ER patterns correctly classify groundwater-lake interactions and provide high spatial resolution of mixing patterns for systems with varying water salinity.
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