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    Monitoring freshwater–saltwater interfaces with SAMOS – installation effects on data and inversion
    (Oxford : Wiley, 2020) Ronczka, Mathias; Günther, Thomas; Grinat, Michael; Wiederhold, Helga
    A major problem for the freshwater supply of coastal regions is the intrusion of saltwater into aquifers. Due to extensive extraction of freshwater to suffice increasing drinking water demands and/or in periods of reduced groundwater recharge, the equilibrium state may be disturbed. The result is an upconing or movement of the fresh–saline groundwater interface, which reduces the local drinking water resources at coastal regions or islands. The saltwater monitoring system (SAMOS) is a vertical electrode chain installed in a backfilled borehole. It provides a solution to observe the transition zone in detail, both temporally and spatially. We present monitoring data of the first year from three locations - with different geological conditions that show disturbances in the resistivity distribution that result from the drilling processes. A clayey backfilling, for example, can lead to beam-like artefacts, and a mixed fluid within the backfilling changes its bulk resistivity, both leading to misinterpretations. We performed data inversion under cylindrically symmetrical conditions in full-space in order to separate these resistivity artefacts from the undisturbed background. Data inversion reveals that it is possible to separate drilling effects on the resistivity distribution from the undisturbed background. Thus, an interpretation of the natural transition zones can be made immediately after the installation. © 2020 The Authors. Near Surface Geophysics published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers.
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    Coastal groundwater systems: mapping chloride distribution from borehole and geophysical data
    (Berlin ; Heidelberg : Springer, 2021-1-21) Rahman, Mohammad Azizur; Zhao, Qian; Wiederhold, Helga; Skibbe, Nico; González, Eva; Deus, Nico; Siemon, Bernhard; Kirsch, Reinhard; Elbracht, Jörg
    Information on chloride (Cl) distribution in aquifers is essential for planning and management of coastal zone groundwater resources as well as for simulation and validation of density-driven groundwater models. We developed a method to derive chloride concentrations from borehole information and helicopter-borne electromagnetic (HEM) data for the coastal aquifer in the Elbe-Weser region where observed chloride and electrical conductivity data reveal that the horizontal distribution of salinity is not uniform and does not correlate with the coastline. The integrated approach uses HEM resistivity data, borehole petrography information, grain size analysis of borehole samples as well as observed chloride and electrical conductivity to estimate Cl distribution. The approch is not straightforward due to the complex nature of the geology where clay and silt are present. Possible errors and uncertainties involved at different steps of the method are discussed.
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    Airborne electromagnetic, magnetic, and radiometric surveys at the German North Sea coast applied to groundwater and soil investigations
    (Basel : MDPI, 2020) Siemon, Bernhard; Ibs-von Seht, Malte; Steuer, Annika; Deus, Nico; Wiederhold, Helga
    The knowledge of the subsurface down to about one hundred meters is fundamental for a variety of economic, ecological, and geoscientific tasks, particularly in coastal zones. Marine and terrestrial processes influence coastal zones and both seawater intrusion and submarine freshwater discharges may occur. The Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR) conducted airborne geophysical surveys in the coastal region of the German Bight between 2000 and 2014. The helicopter-borne system used simultaneously collected electromagnetic (HEM), magnetic (HMG), and radiometric (HRD) data. An area of about 5900 km2 was covered with parallel flight lines at 250 m line separation and additional tie-lines at larger separations. In total, about 25,000 km of data at sampling distances of 4 m (HEM, HMG) and 40 m (HRD) were acquired. The electrical resistivity (HEM), the anomalies of the magnetic field (HMG), and the exposure rate (HRD) are the resulting geophysical parameters derived from the data. The results are displayed as maps of the geophysical parameters as well as vertical resistivity sections (only HEM). Both data and products are publicly available via BGR’s product center. The airborne geophysical results helped to outline the fresh–saline groundwater interface, freshwater lenses on islands, submarine groundwater discharges, buried tunnel valleys, mires, and ancient landscapes.