Multi Frequency Isotopes Survey to Improve Transit Time Estimation in a Situation of River-Aquifer Interaction

The Barthelasse alluvial aquifer is used to supply water to 180,000 inhabitants. The pumping field is located less than 200 m from the Rhone and is 100% fed by water from the Rhone, which makes it particularly vulnerable to any pollution from the Rhone. Between the Rhone and the pumping field is a Girardon unit, an arrangement that can be found regularly along the banks of the lower and middle reaches of the Rhone, and whose role is to stabilise the banks (alluvial deposits) and to facilitate river navigation. In order to know the transfer times between the Rhone and the pumping field, fortnightly monitoring was carried out over a hydrological year, as well as hourly monitoring during a flood in the winter of 2019. The Rhone shows a cyclicality in its isotopic signature with enrichment in heavy isotopes during the winter period, particularly during floods, and a depletion during the summer period. This variation is found well within the associated alluvial aquifer. The application of LPMs models showed that the average transfer time between the Rhone and the Girardon unit was 20 days and 50 days between the Rhone and the Barthelasse pumping. This study highlighted the importance of using several sampling frequencies to consider the diversity of hydrological situations. For the Rhone, event-based monitoring (flooding) proved to be relevant to account for isotopic variability throughout the year. This work also highlighted the impact of the disruption of hydraulic exchanges between the river and the water table caused by the presence of the Girardon unit in terms of the propagation of contaminants.

Automated summary

The Barthelasse alluvial aquifer, which supplies water to 180,000 inhabitants, relies 100% on water from the Rhone and is vulnerable to pollution from the river. The presence of the Girardon unit disrupts hydraulic exchanges between the river and the water table, impacting the propagation of contaminants.