Improving Conceptual Site Models at Groundwater Remediation Sites through Application of Analog Sedimentary Systems(ABSTRACT)

摘要

Accurate correlation of 2-D subsurface data (monitoring wells, CPT, MIP, etc.) at contaminated groundwater sites is critical to defining hydrostratigraphic units, identifying preferential pathways of contaminant transport, and predicting the degree of aquifer heterogeneity. Analog sedimentary systems are sedimentary units that have critical aspects in common with the aquifer in question and this is a powerful means for defining the aquifer architecture. The two most critical characteristics to consider in analog selection are depositional environment and grain size. Depositional environment (e.g., fluvial (riverine) channel, floodplain, lacustrine, deltaic, glacial, etc.) is an important consideration because it determines the types and orientations of depositional bodies or “architectural elements” that comprise a given aquifer system. Grain size, and especially the range of grain sizes present within the system, is important in that it is representative of the level of energy in the depositional processes, which controls the ultimate depositional architecture.