ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science

Home → Environment → Pollution

Deep groundwaters are not safe from modern pollution, study finds

Not good.

Alexandru MicubyAlexandru Micu
April 26, 2017 - Updated on April 28, 2017
in News, Pollution
A A
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterSubmit to Reddit

RelatedPosts

Fighting against soot – more important than ever
Scientists take snapshots that show how water conducts electricity
Half of all water in the oceans may have come from ancient asteroid collisions
Indian lake turns pink almost overnight

Even the deepest, oldest bodies of groundwater show signs of modern pollution, a new paper from the University of Calgary reports.

Water well.
That’s one spooky well.
Image credits Sid Litke.

There’s a lot more water hidden in the bowels of the Earth than you’d believe — an estimated 100 times more water is stored deep underground in fissures and pores than what we see on the surface. And some of it is incredibly old, so old in fact that we refer to it as ‘fossil water’. For both these reasons, it’s been believed that fossil water wouldn’t be impacted by the same elements that act on surface waters, such as chemical pollutants.

But it seems that this isn’t the case, and fossil, as well as groundwaters, are still able to mix with potentially contaminated surface waters. Which is bad news for the billions of people who rely on these resources for agriculture, washing, and drinking.

“Groundwater is an immense resource,” says Scott Jasechko, an assistant professor of geography at the University of Calgary and lead author on the new study. “About a third of human water uses are derived from groundwater, so it’s really an important and precious resource that’s already widely used.”

Jaschko and his team analyzed groundwater samples from 6,455 wells around the world and used carbon dating to determine the age of water levels intercepted by the wells. They found that fossil groundwater makes up anywhere between 42-85% of the water in aquifer bodies within the top kilometer of the crust. They further showed that fossil water which has been trapped underground for at least 12,000 years makes up most of the water volume pumped from 250m or deeper wells.

The really worrying find is that half of the fossil groundwater-heavy wells used in the study also contained “detectable levels of tritium”. Tritium is a radioactive hydrogen isotope which scientists use to spot recently recharged water — during the 1950s nuclear testing, there was a massive increase in tritium levels. Finding the isotope in fossil waters indicates that water recharged in the past six decades was mixed in. This would suggest that modern pollutants can also find their way into fossil aquifers by piggybacking on water circulation through deep wells.

“We conclude that water quality risk should be considered along with sustainable use when managing fossil groundwater resources,” the authors write.

The paper “Global aquifers dominated by fossil groundwaters but wells vulnerable to modern contamination” has been published in the journal Nature Geoscience.

Tags: pollutionTritiumundergroundwater

ShareTweetShare
Alexandru Micu

Alexandru Micu

Stunningly charming pun connoisseur, I have been fascinated by the world around me since I first laid eyes on it. Always curious, I'm just having a little fun with some very serious science.

Related Posts

Environment

New Global River Map Is the First to Include River Bifurcations and Canals

byRebecca Owen
4 days ago
Health

Climbing gyms are as polluted as busy city streets — and shoes are to blame

byTudor Tarita
2 weeks ago
Environment

Mexico Will Give U.S. More Water to Avert More Tariffs

byKimberly M. S. Cartier
3 weeks ago
Environment

This Caddisfly Discovered Microplastics in 1971—and We Just Noticed

byMihai Andrei
1 month ago

Recent news

This Superbug Learned How to Feed on Plastic from Hospitals

May 20, 2025

China’s Tiangong space station has some bacteria that are unknown to science

May 20, 2025

Hidden Communication Devices Found in Chinese-Made Inverters Could Put U.S. Electrical Grid at Risk

May 20, 2025
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Editorial Policy
  • Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
  • How we review products
  • Contact

© 2007-2025 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Science News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Space
  • Future
  • Features
    • Natural Sciences
    • Physics
      • Matter and Energy
      • Quantum Mechanics
      • Thermodynamics
    • Chemistry
      • Periodic Table
      • Applied Chemistry
      • Materials
      • Physical Chemistry
    • Biology
      • Anatomy
      • Biochemistry
      • Ecology
      • Genetics
      • Microbiology
      • Plants and Fungi
    • Geology and Paleontology
      • Planet Earth
      • Earth Dynamics
      • Rocks and Minerals
      • Volcanoes
      • Dinosaurs
      • Fossils
    • Animals
      • Mammals
      • Birds
      • Fish
      • Amphibians
      • Reptiles
      • Invertebrates
      • Pets
      • Conservation
      • Animal facts
    • Climate and Weather
      • Climate change
      • Weather and atmosphere
    • Health
      • Drugs
      • Diseases and Conditions
      • Human Body
      • Mind and Brain
      • Food and Nutrition
      • Wellness
    • History and Humanities
      • Anthropology
      • Archaeology
      • History
      • Economics
      • People
      • Sociology
    • Space & Astronomy
      • The Solar System
      • Sun
      • The Moon
      • Planets
      • Asteroids, meteors & comets
      • Astronomy
      • Astrophysics
      • Cosmology
      • Exoplanets & Alien Life
      • Spaceflight and Exploration
    • Technology
      • Computer Science & IT
      • Engineering
      • Inventions
      • Sustainability
      • Renewable Energy
      • Green Living
    • Culture
    • Resources
  • Videos
  • Reviews
  • About Us
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Editorial policy
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact

© 2007-2025 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.