Assessment and modeling of groundwater flow and nitrate contamination within coastal karst aquifer of Puerto Rico
Permanent URL:
http://hdl.handle.net/2047/D20263266
Larese-Casanova, Philip (Committee member)
Fernandez, Loretta A. (Committee member)
In the second section, groundwater Nitrate contamination, as a result of agricultural, industrial and urban development, is assessed for north-central part of Puerto Rico. Using collected field samples and historical data, a Nitrate fate and transport simulation was conducted using MODFLOW and MT3D models. The calculated results of the regional-scale simulation showed high correlation with observed values and hence, the calibrated model was used for prediction purposes. Using land cover data and by assessing agricultural development trend in the island, spatiotemporal pattern of groundwater Nitrate concentration was predicted for the next two decades. It was predicted that agricultural activities will rise dramatically after economic damages of Hurricane Maria and this will negatively impact the groundwater quality. Based on the model prediction results, recommended management plans for each municipality were presented for the use of policy makers and authorities.
karst
modeling
MODFLOW
nitrate
Puerto Rico
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