Intensive agriculture, a pesticide pathway to >100 m deep groundwater below dryland agriculture, Cordoba Pampas, Argentina

Autores
Cabrera, Agustín; Cendón, Dioni; Aparicio, Virginia Carolina; Currell, Matthew
Año de publicación
2024
Idioma
inglés
Tipo de recurso
artículo
Estado
versión publicada
Descripción
Groundwater pesticide pollution in shallow groundwater is a well-established global phenomenon. However, deep aquifers are widely thought to be naturally protected from such modern contaminants, by confining geological barriers and upwards hydraulic gradients. Here we document pervasive pesticide pollution in >100 m deep artesian wells in a sedimentary aquifer below dryland agriculture. The vertical distribution of key groundwater markers, including numbers and concentrations of pesticides, stable (δ18O & δ2H) and radioactive (3H & 14C) isotopes and ion concentrations were used to develop a conceptual model of pollutant transport to deep groundwater. Tritium, stable isotope and pesticide distributions in unconfined groundwater indicate that water table rise to <1 m below the surface (due to anthropogenic landscape modification and periodic flooding), has created a rapid pollutant ‘doorway’ to groundwater. Despite a lack of deep borehole pumping for irrigation, these rising water tables have permanently inverted previously upward hydraulic gradients towards the underlying semi-confined aquifer in some areas. Physical heterogeneities and/or leaky domestic boreholes then act as preferential transport avenues for surface pollutants to both unconfined and semi-confined groundwater. These pathways allow small aliquots of highly contaminated surface water and modern unconfined groundwater to mix with the pre-existing pre-modern deep groundwater, resulting in mixed isotopic signatures in deep wells (e.g., radiocarbon <5 pMC but detectable tritium) and detections of multiple synthetic pesticides in the deep aquifer, including AMPA at concentrations up to 4.93 µg/L and Metolachlor up to 0.015 µg/L. Our results demonstrate how semi-confined deep groundwaters may be contaminated by current agricultural techniques even where deep groundwater exploitation is limited. We urge measures to eliminate these pollutant pathways.
EEA Balcarce
Fil: Cabrera, Agustín. RMIT University. School of Engineering; Australia
Fil: Cendón, Dioni. Australia's Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation; Australia
Fil: Aparicio, Virginia Carolina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce; Argentina
Fil: Currell, Matthew. RMIT University. School of Engineering; Australia
Fil: Currell, Matthew J. ANSTO. Centro de distribución de Kirrawee; Australia
Fuente
Journal of Hydrology 643 : 131989 (November 2024)
Materia
Explotación Agrícola Intensiva
Polución del Agua
Polución de Aguas Subterráneas
Plaguicidas
Contaminación
Argentina
Intensive Farming
Water Pollution
Groundwater Pollution
Pesticides
Contamination
Nivel de accesibilidad
acceso abierto
Condiciones de uso
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Repositorio
INTA Digital (INTA)
Institución
Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
OAI Identificador
oai:localhost:20.500.12123/19637
Acceder
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oai_identifier_str oai:localhost:20.500.12123/19637
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repository_id_str l
network_name_str INTA Digital (INTA)
spelling Intensive agriculture, a pesticide pathway to >100 m deep groundwater below dryland agriculture, Cordoba Pampas, ArgentinaCabrera, AgustínCendón, DioniAparicio, Virginia CarolinaCurrell, MatthewExplotación Agrícola IntensivaPolución del AguaPolución de Aguas SubterráneasPlaguicidasContaminaciónArgentinaIntensive FarmingWater PollutionGroundwater PollutionPesticidesContaminationGroundwater pesticide pollution in shallow groundwater is a well-established global phenomenon. However, deep aquifers are widely thought to be naturally protected from such modern contaminants, by confining geological barriers and upwards hydraulic gradients. Here we document pervasive pesticide pollution in >100 m deep artesian wells in a sedimentary aquifer below dryland agriculture. The vertical distribution of key groundwater markers, including numbers and concentrations of pesticides, stable (δ18O & δ2H) and radioactive (3H & 14C) isotopes and ion concentrations were used to develop a conceptual model of pollutant transport to deep groundwater. Tritium, stable isotope and pesticide distributions in unconfined groundwater indicate that water table rise to <1 m below the surface (due to anthropogenic landscape modification and periodic flooding), has created a rapid pollutant ‘doorway’ to groundwater. Despite a lack of deep borehole pumping for irrigation, these rising water tables have permanently inverted previously upward hydraulic gradients towards the underlying semi-confined aquifer in some areas. Physical heterogeneities and/or leaky domestic boreholes then act as preferential transport avenues for surface pollutants to both unconfined and semi-confined groundwater. These pathways allow small aliquots of highly contaminated surface water and modern unconfined groundwater to mix with the pre-existing pre-modern deep groundwater, resulting in mixed isotopic signatures in deep wells (e.g., radiocarbon <5 pMC but detectable tritium) and detections of multiple synthetic pesticides in the deep aquifer, including AMPA at concentrations up to 4.93 µg/L and Metolachlor up to 0.015 µg/L. Our results demonstrate how semi-confined deep groundwaters may be contaminated by current agricultural techniques even where deep groundwater exploitation is limited. We urge measures to eliminate these pollutant pathways.EEA BalcarceFil: Cabrera, Agustín. RMIT University. School of Engineering; AustraliaFil: Cendón, Dioni. Australia's Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation; AustraliaFil: Aparicio, Virginia Carolina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce; ArgentinaFil: Currell, Matthew. RMIT University. School of Engineering; AustraliaFil: Currell, Matthew J. ANSTO. Centro de distribución de Kirrawee; AustraliaElsevier2024-10-02T11:42:21Z2024-10-02T11:42:21Z2024-11info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionhttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501info:ar-repo/semantics/articuloapplication/pdfhttp://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/19637https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S00221694240138420022-16941879-2707https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2024.131989Journal of Hydrology 643 : 131989 (November 2024)reponame:INTA Digital (INTA)instname:Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuariaenginfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccesshttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)2025-09-04T09:50:40Zoai:localhost:20.500.12123/19637instacron:INTAInstitucionalhttp://repositorio.inta.gob.ar/Organismo científico-tecnológicoNo correspondehttp://repositorio.inta.gob.ar/oai/requesttripaldi.nicolas@inta.gob.arArgentinaNo correspondeNo correspondeNo correspondeopendoar:l2025-09-04 09:50:40.487INTA Digital (INTA) - Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuariafalse
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Intensive agriculture, a pesticide pathway to >100 m deep groundwater below dryland agriculture, Cordoba Pampas, Argentina
title Intensive agriculture, a pesticide pathway to >100 m deep groundwater below dryland agriculture, Cordoba Pampas, Argentina
spellingShingle Intensive agriculture, a pesticide pathway to >100 m deep groundwater below dryland agriculture, Cordoba Pampas, Argentina
Cabrera, Agustín
Explotación Agrícola Intensiva
Polución del Agua
Polución de Aguas Subterráneas
Plaguicidas
Contaminación
Argentina
Intensive Farming
Water Pollution
Groundwater Pollution
Pesticides
Contamination
title_short Intensive agriculture, a pesticide pathway to >100 m deep groundwater below dryland agriculture, Cordoba Pampas, Argentina
title_full Intensive agriculture, a pesticide pathway to >100 m deep groundwater below dryland agriculture, Cordoba Pampas, Argentina
title_fullStr Intensive agriculture, a pesticide pathway to >100 m deep groundwater below dryland agriculture, Cordoba Pampas, Argentina
title_full_unstemmed Intensive agriculture, a pesticide pathway to >100 m deep groundwater below dryland agriculture, Cordoba Pampas, Argentina
title_sort Intensive agriculture, a pesticide pathway to >100 m deep groundwater below dryland agriculture, Cordoba Pampas, Argentina
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Cabrera, Agustín
Cendón, Dioni
Aparicio, Virginia Carolina
Currell, Matthew
author Cabrera, Agustín
author_facet Cabrera, Agustín
Cendón, Dioni
Aparicio, Virginia Carolina
Currell, Matthew
author_role author
author2 Cendón, Dioni
Aparicio, Virginia Carolina
Currell, Matthew
author2_role author
author
author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Explotación Agrícola Intensiva
Polución del Agua
Polución de Aguas Subterráneas
Plaguicidas
Contaminación
Argentina
Intensive Farming
Water Pollution
Groundwater Pollution
Pesticides
Contamination
topic Explotación Agrícola Intensiva
Polución del Agua
Polución de Aguas Subterráneas
Plaguicidas
Contaminación
Argentina
Intensive Farming
Water Pollution
Groundwater Pollution
Pesticides
Contamination
dc.description.none.fl_txt_mv Groundwater pesticide pollution in shallow groundwater is a well-established global phenomenon. However, deep aquifers are widely thought to be naturally protected from such modern contaminants, by confining geological barriers and upwards hydraulic gradients. Here we document pervasive pesticide pollution in >100 m deep artesian wells in a sedimentary aquifer below dryland agriculture. The vertical distribution of key groundwater markers, including numbers and concentrations of pesticides, stable (δ18O & δ2H) and radioactive (3H & 14C) isotopes and ion concentrations were used to develop a conceptual model of pollutant transport to deep groundwater. Tritium, stable isotope and pesticide distributions in unconfined groundwater indicate that water table rise to <1 m below the surface (due to anthropogenic landscape modification and periodic flooding), has created a rapid pollutant ‘doorway’ to groundwater. Despite a lack of deep borehole pumping for irrigation, these rising water tables have permanently inverted previously upward hydraulic gradients towards the underlying semi-confined aquifer in some areas. Physical heterogeneities and/or leaky domestic boreholes then act as preferential transport avenues for surface pollutants to both unconfined and semi-confined groundwater. These pathways allow small aliquots of highly contaminated surface water and modern unconfined groundwater to mix with the pre-existing pre-modern deep groundwater, resulting in mixed isotopic signatures in deep wells (e.g., radiocarbon <5 pMC but detectable tritium) and detections of multiple synthetic pesticides in the deep aquifer, including AMPA at concentrations up to 4.93 µg/L and Metolachlor up to 0.015 µg/L. Our results demonstrate how semi-confined deep groundwaters may be contaminated by current agricultural techniques even where deep groundwater exploitation is limited. We urge measures to eliminate these pollutant pathways.
EEA Balcarce
Fil: Cabrera, Agustín. RMIT University. School of Engineering; Australia
Fil: Cendón, Dioni. Australia's Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation; Australia
Fil: Aparicio, Virginia Carolina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce; Argentina
Fil: Currell, Matthew. RMIT University. School of Engineering; Australia
Fil: Currell, Matthew J. ANSTO. Centro de distribución de Kirrawee; Australia
description Groundwater pesticide pollution in shallow groundwater is a well-established global phenomenon. However, deep aquifers are widely thought to be naturally protected from such modern contaminants, by confining geological barriers and upwards hydraulic gradients. Here we document pervasive pesticide pollution in >100 m deep artesian wells in a sedimentary aquifer below dryland agriculture. The vertical distribution of key groundwater markers, including numbers and concentrations of pesticides, stable (δ18O & δ2H) and radioactive (3H & 14C) isotopes and ion concentrations were used to develop a conceptual model of pollutant transport to deep groundwater. Tritium, stable isotope and pesticide distributions in unconfined groundwater indicate that water table rise to <1 m below the surface (due to anthropogenic landscape modification and periodic flooding), has created a rapid pollutant ‘doorway’ to groundwater. Despite a lack of deep borehole pumping for irrigation, these rising water tables have permanently inverted previously upward hydraulic gradients towards the underlying semi-confined aquifer in some areas. Physical heterogeneities and/or leaky domestic boreholes then act as preferential transport avenues for surface pollutants to both unconfined and semi-confined groundwater. These pathways allow small aliquots of highly contaminated surface water and modern unconfined groundwater to mix with the pre-existing pre-modern deep groundwater, resulting in mixed isotopic signatures in deep wells (e.g., radiocarbon <5 pMC but detectable tritium) and detections of multiple synthetic pesticides in the deep aquifer, including AMPA at concentrations up to 4.93 µg/L and Metolachlor up to 0.015 µg/L. Our results demonstrate how semi-confined deep groundwaters may be contaminated by current agricultural techniques even where deep groundwater exploitation is limited. We urge measures to eliminate these pollutant pathways.
publishDate 2024
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2024-10-02T11:42:21Z
2024-10-02T11:42:21Z
2024-11
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501
info:ar-repo/semantics/articulo
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/19637
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022169424013842
0022-1694
1879-2707
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2024.131989
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/19637
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022169424013842
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2024.131989
identifier_str_mv 0022-1694
1879-2707
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv eng
language eng
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv application/pdf
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv Elsevier
publisher.none.fl_str_mv Elsevier
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv Journal of Hydrology 643 : 131989 (November 2024)
reponame:INTA Digital (INTA)
instname:Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
reponame_str INTA Digital (INTA)
collection INTA Digital (INTA)
instname_str Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
repository.name.fl_str_mv INTA Digital (INTA) - Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
repository.mail.fl_str_mv tripaldi.nicolas@inta.gob.ar
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score 12.623145

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