Hydrology: Current Research

Groundwater Exploration for Water Well Site Locations Using Geophysical Survey Methods

Abstract

Haile Arefayne Shishaye and Semir Abdi

Groundwater exploration is the investigation of underground formations to understand the hydrologic cycle, know the groundwater quality, and identify the nature, number and type of aquifers. There are different groundwater exploration methods. Surface geophysical method is one of the groundwater investigation methods. One of the surface geophysical methods is therefore the vertical electrical sounding method. Vertical Electrical Sounding (VES) is one to provide valuable information regarding the vertical successions of subsurface geo-materials in terms of their individual thicknesses and corresponding resistivity values. It is rapid and much effective in estimating aquifer thickness of an area and is cost effective technique for groundwater study. The objective of this study was therefore to locate two well site locations using surface geophysical methods for water supply purposes. However, hydrogeological and geological investigations were also incorporated in addition to the geophysical surveying activities for the betterment of the project. Finally, the intended well site locations with their corresponding thickness and resistivity values were identified using the integrated approaches.