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Isotopic and Hydrogeochemical Evidence of Modern Water Recharge of Freshwater Lens in the Ningbo Coastal Plain Along Concealed Faults

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Abstract

Most of the freshwater in the aquifers in the Ningbo Basin has been replaced or mixed with seawater due to transgressions during the Late Pleistocene and Holocene. Only one freshwater lens has been preserved in the central area of the basin. Scholars believe that the deep confined freshwater lens in the Ningbo Basin is connate. However, there is a lack of research focusing on this topic and the evidence is insufficient. The data obtained from monitoring wells suggest that groundwater has been exploited until now. The evolution of the tectonic stress field and fault data for the Ningbo Basin indicate that the concealed NE- and NW-trending faults are likely water-conducting. Thus, the following hypothesis was put forward: the deep confined aquifers were recharged upward by the fissure water of the concealed faults. A series of tests and analyses of hydrochemical ions and various isotopes of the deep confined water were carried out, and two sets of hydrogeochemical and isotopic data obtained in November 2017 and May 2018 were compared. The 3H activity indicates notable recharge of the aquifers with modern water. The significant correlation between the 14C age and the 222Rn activity indicates rapid groundwater replacement in several sampling wells. The location of these sampling wells is related closely to the concealed faults. Thus, the hypothesis can be confirmed; the deep confined aquifers were recharged by modern water from the bottom and the concealed faults provided the access.

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Funding

This research was supported by the fundamental research funds for the National Key R&D Program of China, No. 2018YFC1505504), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 52004072, 51879016, 52064006, and 52164001), the Guizhou Provincial Science and Technology Foundation (Nos. [2020]4Y044, [2021]292, [2020]2004, No. GCC[2022]005-1, and [2021]N404) and the Youth Science and technology Talents Development Project of Guizhou Ordinary colleges and universities (No. [2022]140).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Civil Engineering, Guizhou University, Guiyang, 550025, Guizhou, China

    Yu Zhao & Chaolin Wang

  2. Guizhou Provincial Key Laboratory of Rock and Soil Mechanics and Engineering Safety, Guizhou University, Guiyang, 550025, Guizhou, China

    Yu Zhao & Chaolin Wang

  3. School of Civil Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400045, China

    Han Cao & Haiqing Yang

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  1. Yu Zhao
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Correspondence to Chaolin Wang.

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The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

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Zhao, Y., Cao, H., Wang, C. et al. Isotopic and Hydrogeochemical Evidence of Modern Water Recharge of Freshwater Lens in the Ningbo Coastal Plain Along Concealed Faults. Nat Resour Res 31, 2523–2547 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11053-022-10090-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11053-022-10090-3

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