ESTIMATION OF WELLHEAD PROTECTION AREAS UNDER CONDITIONS OF UNCERTAINTY

The determination of wellhead protection areas is a matter of major importance especially for wells supplying water for domestic use, since it allows water resources managers and local authorities to impose measures over the development of agricultural or industrial activities that could somehow affect the quality of groundwater. In this paper an investigation, using computer-based mathematical models, of the implications of uncertainty on the estimation of a number of parameters that affect the delineation of wellhead protection areas is performed. These parameters include hydrogeological factors such as transmissivity, effective porosity and hydraulic gradient, as well as functional parameters such as the abstraction rate of pumping wells. The results derived from this analysis indicate the importance of the application of mathematical models in order to protect public health and at the same time avoid unnecessary limitations in productive activities