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The moving distance of the diffusion front is farther away the canister center, along the direction with the neighboring layer having lower diffusion coefficient. When the bedding angle increases, the diffusion front moves farther in z+ direction, reflecting the increase in effective diffusivity and higher impact of parallel-to-bedding diffusion. The neighboring layers can slightly reshape the diffusion front line of the radionuclide.

The quantification of the impacts on the environment and human health is a crucial prerequisite for geological sub-surface utilisation projects. With the presented approach, the shortcomings of using conceptually simplified models are substantially reduced, since subsurface complexities are accounted for. The transparency of the assessment basis should generally increase the acceptance of geoengineering projects, considered one of the crucial aspects for geological subsurface utilisation.

For a potential utilisation of coal resources located in Hungary, an assessment of groundwater pollution resulting from a water-borne contaminant pool has been undertaken. A sensitivity analysis was carried out by means of numerical simulations. Simulation results demonstrate that fluid flow via the regional faults is the main driver for a potential contamination of shallow groundwater aquifers. A parameter correlation analysis is presented.

The knowledge of the aquifer characteristics and its quality together with these vulnerable areas may lead to improve the installation of SUDS, reducing the input of contaminants through these infrastructures. The implementation of this methodology aims to facilitate water users and urban managers to control their potential negative effects on the receiving water body. In addtion, the outcomes of its application may be used to optimize the groundwater management in the city.

The project develops an integrated methodology to optimise the protection of groundwater catchments from urban pollution. This requires identifying their origins which are not always known, characterising composition and importance in terms of pollutant load, assessing current/future risks for the environment and the catchment itself, and the need for remediation. To do so, a combination of tracers and approaches has been applied and a decision-making reference system is going to be developed.

In the current climate and socioeconomic context, The Katari and Minor Lake Titicaca basin (Bolivia) has special interest because of the sensitive and vulnerable environment and ecosystems around the Titicaca Lake. These environments support traditional local human populations and other beneficial human activities. That is why we made workshops with local authorities and performed a global vision of the aquifer behavior and its vulnerability, which would generate a better decision-make process.

The present study, uses density-driven flow and transport models to evaluate mechanisms of saline water intrusion from deep aquifers into the freshwater column used for drinking water supply under different boundary conditions and for a specific site in the German Federal State of Brandenburg. Results show that mainly decreasing groundwater recharge leads to increased and earlier salinisation which highlights the need for waterworks to initiate effective countermeasures quickly and in time.

Within the Cheap-GSHPs and GEO4CIVHIC projects, innovations were advanced in the field of ground heat exchangers design for shallow geothermal systems. Among these, a metallic type has been proposed that can be installed in direct contact with the underground. As carbon steel is prone to corrosion and corrosivity varies based on site-specific underground conditions, a laboratory assessment methodology was applied to metal samples to assess the corrosion rate and forecast the durability.

The geothermal hot water reservoir below the small town of Waiwera in New Zealand has been known to the indigenous Maori for many centuries. Overproduction by European immigrants led to a water level decrease and consequently artesian flow from the wells and the seeps on the beach ceased. The Te Kaunihera o Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland Council established the Waiwera Thermal Groundwater Allocation and Management Plan to allow the geothermal system to recover.

The TRANSPORT Simulation Environment (TRANSPORTSE) was coupled with the geochemical reaction module PHREEQC, providing multiple new features that make it applicable to complex reactive transport problems in various geoscientific fields. Two computationally demanding and complex geochemical benchmarks were used in the present study to successfully verify the code implementation.

Safety assessments must demonstrate that radionuclides in potential disposal sites are retained within the containment providing rock zone using reactive transport simulations. Here, this is quantified for the example of uranium in the hydrogeological system of the Opalinus Clay at Mont Terri. Our work clearly shows how sensitive migration lengths resulting from simulations are to the model conceptualisation and selection of underlying data.

This paper explores the impact of low enthalpy geothermal energy (LEGE) on the behaviour of organic contaminants of emerging concern (CECs). Specifically, we investigate the impact of LEGE on phenazone that is an analgesic drug commonly reported in urban aquifers. CECs pose a risk for the environment and human health, and thus, they must be eliminated to increase the available fresh-water resources in urban areas, where water scarcity is a matter of concern due to the population growth.

The occurrence of pharmaceuticals was investigated in an urban aquifer that might be a resource for water supply. Among the 92 pharmaceuticals, 35 were detected in all groundwater samples, ranging from the low ng/L to 44.5 µg/L. The concentration of some substances decreased along the bank filtration, suggesting the occurrence of natural attenuation processes. Finally, risk quotients showed that these substances did not pose a risk to human health at groundwater measured concentrations.

Porosity-permeability relations are simulated for a precipitation-dissolution cycle in a virtual sandstone. A hysteresis in permeability is observed depending on the geochemical process and dominating reaction regime, whereby permeability varies by more than two orders of magnitude. Controlling parameters for this hysteresis phenomenon are the closure and re-opening of micro-scale flow channels, derived from changes in pore throat diameter and connectivity of the pore network.