『Abstract
The Kouris catchment is located in the south of the Troodos massif
in Cyprus. It constitutes one of the biggest catchments of the
island with important freshwater resources. Geologically, the
catchment includes an ophiolitic complex outcropping in the north
which is overlaid by sedimentary rocks in the south. The hydrology
is driven by a Mediterranean climate, a mountainous topography,
and a complex distribution of the hydrogeological properties resulting
from the complex geology.
To improve the understanding of groundwater hydrology of the
Kouris catchment, 176 groundwater and precipitation samples were
collected and their 3H contents were analyzes. The
three-dimensional 3H transport in the groundwater was
simulated by the PMPATH code. For numerical modelling, a regional
input function of 3H in precipitation was constructed
from a linear regression between data for Cyprus and for neighboring
meteorological stations. The calculated residence times for the
groundwaters in the sedimentary aquifer and Pillow Lavas were
greater than 48 a and were considerably greater than those of
the ophiolitic complex (14-30 a). The calibrated aquifer porosities
were in a range of 0.05-0.06. The PMPATH model was applied for
delineation of spring catchments that were represented by quite
narrow zones of lengths up to 5 km.
Another contribution resulting from the 3H analysis
was a better understanding of the river-aquifer interactions.
In most of the southern part, the lithified sediments received
only negligible amounts of water from the rivers, while the alluvial
aquifer contained mostly water infiltrated from rivers. The largest
springs in the southern part, associated with the alluvial aquifer,
also discharged water identical to that in the rivers.』
1. Introduction
2. The Kouris catchment
2.1. The ophiolitic complex
2.2. The sedimentary complex
3. Collection of water samples and uncertainties of measurements
4. Tritium content in precipitation
5. Tritium content in surface and groundwater
5.1. Surface water
5.2. Groundwater
5.2.1. Ophiolitic complex
5.2.2. Volcanogenic rocks
5.2.3. Alluvial aquifer
5.2.4. Sedimentary aquifer (consolidated)
6. Transient groundwater flow model
6.1. Time-independent parameters
6.2. Time-dependent parameters
7. Model of tritium transport in the aquifer
8. Discussion
8.1. Modelling of transient groundwater flow
8.2. Modelling of 3H transport in the aquifer
9. Conclusions
Acknowledgments
References