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The hydraulic and transfer response of karst aquifers is complex and often highly nonlinear: due to their high transmissivity and connection with the surface, such systems are very sensitive to modifications of their boundary conditions. The aim of this study was to assess the variation of the response depending on both upstream and downstream parameters, and propose a methodology to simulate the response of the karst system depending on those parameters. The impact of the variations of multiple environmental parameters on the response of a karstic system submitted to tidal variations (Normandy, France) was investigated after a campaign of artificial tracer tests acquired in very different hydrologic conditions (rainfall events, low tide, high tide, low/high piezometric level, and low/high waters). Principal components analysis and hierarchical clustering were applied on both environmental variables and karstic system response variables (parameters of the residence time distribution [ RTD] curves). Equations between the RTD parameters and the most relevant variables were established using a symbolic regression algorithm. It appeared that the variations of the RTD parameters depend mainly on the cumulated rainfall preceding the injection, the piezometric level of the aquifer, and on the tide parameters. The hydraulic conditions downstream of the aquifer have a strong influence on the hydraulic and transfer response of the aquifer. The response of the aquifer in various and extreme conditions has been simulated using the equations resulting from the symbolic regression algorithm. Such relationships can be useful for management of water resources in karst media, and support decision making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary In the Paris Basin in Upper Normandy (France), the chalk plateaus are covered with thick deposits of loess and clay-with-flints, from a few meters to approximately 40 m thick locally. A perched groundwater is sometimes observed in the superficial layers in which evapotranspiration processes seem to occur. This study’s objective was to understand the effects of the thick clay-with-flints layers on the infiltration processes. To achieve this, we adopted a spatial approach comparing the maps of the geochemical properties of the Chalk groundwater and the maps of the thickness of clay-with-flints. The French national groundwater database, ADES (Accès aux Données des Eaux, BRGM), provided the mean geochemical properties in the Chalk aquifer of Upper Normandy. This database was used to prepare maps of the environmental tracers: Ca 2+ , HCO 3 − , Mg 2+ , Cl − , Na + , NO 3 − , and SO 4 2 . The data are spatially well organized. Using principal component analysis (PCA), these maps were compared with the maps of the thickness of clay-with-flints. A focus on the coastal basins (northern Upper Normandy) shows a very strong spatial correlation between the maps of clay-with-flints thickness and all of the maps of the major ions. The thickness of clay-with-flints is negatively correlated with the autochthonous ions (HCO 3 − and Ca 2+ ) and is positively correlated with the allochthonous ions (Cl − , Na + , SO 4 2− , and NO 3 − ). These results highlight that the thickness of clay-with-flints controls recharge. Two types of infiltration processes are proposed: (1) Thicker clay-with-flints allows storage in the perched groundwater, which allows evapotranspiration, resulting in high concentrations of allochthonous ions and a decrease in the dissolution potential of water and low concentrations of autochthonous ions. The infiltration of the perched groundwater is thus delayed and concentrated. (2) Thinner clay-with-flints causes the infiltration to be more diffuse, with low evapotranspiration and thus low concentrations of allochthonous ions in the Chalk groundwater; more, there is more dissolution and higher concentrations of autochthonous ions in the Chalk groundwater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Summary: Piezometric variability was investigated using monthly time series from 40 piezometers in different areas across the Upper Normandy region, over the 1968–2009 period. The piezometers were classified according to their hydrological behaviour. This paper aimed at characterising the dominant modes explaining piezometric variability and at investigating the causes of this variability. Significant components in the piezometric signals were identified: the annual cycle and an interannual mode (4–12years) with different variances for each observation borehole group. The influence of the morphostructural organisation of the Upper Normandy chalk plateau on the modalities of the water level variability in the chalk aquifer was defined. The relative contributions and standard deviations of each component found in the signal time series of the groundwater level was estimated. The highest values were recorded in the Northern study area, and clay-with-flints and aquifer thicknesses influence the transfer on an annual scale, while the loess thickness influences the transfer on a multi-year scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]