Estuarine Rivers and the Aquifer

 

The interaction of an estuarine river and the aquifer was studied in the Alexander River, central Israeli coast, as part of the Ph.D. thesis of Yehuda Shalem. In this study we used mini divers and CTD-divers to monitor levels and salinity in the river and in the adjacent aquifer. We also used electrical resistivity TDEM profiles and ERT sections to characterize the salinity across the river-aquifer system.

It was found that aquifer salinization is variable, and depends on the near-river lithology. It was also suggested that the river is underlain by a high salinity water body (the result of winter event-related seawater encroachment in the river channel), which expands an contrasts in relation with river high level events.