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Delineating cost‐effective wellhead protection zones in a rural area in G reece
Author(s) -
Siarkos I.,
Latinopoulos D.,
Katirtzidou M.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
water and environment journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.437
H-Index - 37
eISSN - 1747-6593
pISSN - 1747-6585
DOI - 10.1111/wej.12012
Subject(s) - wellhead , groundwater , zoning , environmental science , water resource management , agriculture , land use , environmental engineering , environmental protection , geography , engineering , civil engineering , petroleum engineering , geotechnical engineering , archaeology
The aim of this study is the protection of groundwater resources from nitrate pollution by regulating land use and by establishing guidelines for agricultural activities within specific wellhead protection areas. Wellhead protection zones are specifically designed in four wells in the municipality of N ea M oudania, an area of intensive agricultural activities in northern G reece. Recent water samples from these wells indicate high levels of nitrates concentrations. Wellhead protection areas are delineated through a geographic information systems ( GIS ) analysis in order to determine the boundaries of protection zones, as well as to identify the land use patterns and the specific crop types around the contaminated wells. Different land use management techniques for groundwater protection zoning are also examined with respect to their implementation cost. The purpose of this analysis is to identify the least expensive management strategy for wellhead protection. The results show that land use changes are always more expensive than implementing agro‐environmental measures.