8. Sampling and National System for Regional

Groundwater Monitoring

Jiri Sima

Hydrogeological system

• Groundwater = important component of the environment and groundwater resources represent a stabilizing part of the total runoff from an area.

• Data about groundwater fluctuation, spring discharge and river flow (surface – baseflow) are important for understanding the groundwater regime as well as for planning of groundwater resources exploitation. These data and information are also important for protection of groundwater resources and protection of water related eco-systems.

National Monitoring System History

• The first systematic monitoring of groundwater started in the 1930s and 40s in connection with the construction of a canal connecting two rivers in the Morava region.

• The groundwater monitoring network was established in the period 1961- 1975 and was completed in the period 1986 – 1990.

Czech Hydrometeorogical Institute

Established in 1953 by law

• Climatic monitoring

• Weather forcasting

• Surface water monitoring

• Groundwater monitoring (Groundwater Department)

Groundwater Department

• standardization of measurement methods

• primary data processing

• evaluation of groundwater regime

• groundwater balance assessment

• administration of groundwater monitoring network

Groundwater monitoring network - history

• Discharge of 499 springs and the groundwater level of 1926 wells were carried out in 1997 (320 wells measured by automatic recorders)

• Technical conditions of the monitoring network were revised (by well logging and TV) in the late 1990s and 2003-2004 and the condition of a large number of monitoring points was found to be poor

Monitoring network in 1997

Technical problems

• The casing of old wells is by steel and stoneware and the filter is often blocked by sediment (sand) and incrustations

• Technical control of these wells revealed that 20% of the wells are only partly working and 30% wells are in bad technical condition

Well logging vehicle at old monitoring well

New goal of network

• Assessment of long-term trends including monitoring climatic changes

• Incorporation of baseflow into the hydrological balance of the Czech Republic

• Evaluation of the impact of human activities (qualitative and quantitative)

• Data for national hydrological balance• Assessment of impact of groundwater regime

upon environment and vice versa

Proposal for new monitoring

European standards

• Average density = 1 monitoring point in each 50 km2.

• minimum density = 1 monitoring point to each 70 km2.

• minimum density in the most important hydrogeological structures = 1 monitoring point to each 30 km2.

Reconstruction of monitoring network

The project 2002 – 2008, proposal for 500 new monitoring points as follows:

• Groundwater monitoring (wells and springs) points

• Surface water monitoring points

• Data acquisition and transfer systems

• 16 856 600 EUR of which 75% was covered by the EU

Project definition

New point distribution

403 new wells

Drilling in winter

Monitoring well casing

Drilling and casing

Well logging

Pumping test

Well head protection

16 new springs

9 new river gauges

13 old river gauging stations reconstr.

New era in monitoring

• Fully automatic system

• Obseravtion of groundwater fluctuation

• Monitoring of quality changes

Groundwater monitoring equipment

Equipment for groundwater level and other parameters monitoring is under dynamic technological development

From simple manually operated to full automatic equipment with data transfer using mobile networks

Groundwater level

The most simple measurement device is manual portable deeper and analog paper based systems

Surface water level monitoring

Modern systems - data logger + •Hydrostatic pressure•Hydrostatic resistivity•Ultrasonic detection•Radar

Data logger +

Data loggers

Ultrasonic sensor and satellite transmitter

Vertical monitoring of quality changes

Auto sampler

Deep sampling

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