WILLIAM SIOK GRADUATE SCHOLARSHIP WINNER
Lauren Bunce SA-10961
Binghamton University Northeast Section
The preservation of freshwater resources is an ever-growing concern for society. Fresh water makes up less than one percent of the total water on Earth, but it is essential for human consumption, irrigation, and industry. Maintaining high quality freshwater resources is a challenge today and will be for generations to come. It is important to understand that fresh water is not an infinite resource. The ever growing and developing human population, now greater than 7.8 bil- lion, has put a strain on water resources. Water is scarce in some regions and other areas have outgrown their local water supply. Some municipalities have polluted their fresh water supplies beyond timely remediation. New York City and Los Angeles are only able to sustain their population by redirecting outside water sources through aqueducts. Urban and subur- ban areas, for example, Long Island, live on top of their water resources. Industrialization, however, has led to leakage of contaminants into subsurface aquifers, compromising usable water and leading to public health crises. My time at the New York City Department of Environmental Protection and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation taught me the importance of geological knowledge for the future of water resources.
Geologists employed in the environmental field work to locate, tap, monitor, and remediate freshwater resources. Of all of the freshwater sources, study of groundwater by geologists can be particularly valuable. Specific rock and sediment types create conditions more likely to store and transmit groundwater. Professionals educated in geology use their knowledge of surficial and bedrock geology to locate usable water supplies. For example, the population of the
Town and Village of New Paltz in Ulster County, New York has grown beyond what the water resources in the area can sustain. New Paltz currently obtains extra water from the Catskill Aqueduct. But if the Catskill Aqueduct were to shut down, New Paltz would be unable to provide enough water to its population. Geologists have been tasked with locating additional water resources in the Ulster County region as a long-term backup supply. These resources include the develop- ment of groundwaters that will supply upwards of 400 gallons of water per minute, which will stabilize the New Paltz water supplies for years to come.
Contamination of freshwater aquifers has contributed to diminishing water supplies and, in some areas such as Bethpage, has caused public health crises. Geologists play an essential role in monitoring and remediating these aquifers. Geological data about regional tectonics and the capacity of rock or sediment to store and transmit water can be used to predict the movement of contamination plumes, and thus, where to locate wells that can remediate the plume. In Nassau County, New York, for example, the groundwater supply for the Town of Bethpage is contaminated by chemical leakage from the Grumman Aircraft Engineering Company. Geologists were tasked with assisting in the installation of monitoring and extraction wells and modeling the extent of the contamina- tion plume. These two actions helped slow the spread of the contaminant plume and allowed treatment plans to be put into place before water supply wells were polluted. Geological knowledge saved the drinking water for the residents of Bethpage and the surrounding towns.
New Paltz and Bethpage are two of many examples that prove the value of a geological perspective when applied to environmental processes that impact the water supplies and public health of our communities. With increasing populations and spread chemical contaminants, community freshwater supplies are threatened. Geological education is important for professionals and also for civilians in order to properly understand and maintain our fragile freshwater resources.
www.aipg.org
Jul.Aug.Sep 2021 • TPG 33
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