Updating of a DRASTIC-based Method for Specific Vulnerability Assessment in Carbonate Aquifers

Abstract

Some methodological modifications are suggested to improve a DRASTIC-based method as a reliable predictor of microbial contamination in extensively fractured and subordinately karstified carbonate aquifers. These modifications will allow a better assessment of vulnerability induced by the concentrated infiltration of surface runoff in two different scenarios: (a) when the karst system is entirely located within an unsaturated aquifer and (b) when the karst system is partially located within a saturated medium. The effectiveness of the updated method has been experimentally verified by comparing the vulnerability values with the results of a hydrogeological and microbiological study at a test site.