GEOL 432 - Hydrogeology

Units: 4
Characteristics of aquifers, aquitards, and the vadose zone. Flow and transport in porous media. Groundwater occurrence and use in California and the Western U.S. Water-rock interaction, groundwater contamination, and cleanup methods. Groundwater management and artificial recharge. Lecture Units: 3; Lab Units: 1.

Prerequisites: Either CHEM 100 or CHEM 111, and either MATH 120, MATH 125, or MATH 130, and either PHYS 115, PHYS 125, or PHYS 135.
Equivalent Quarter Course: GEOL 4320.
Possible Instructional Methods: Entirely On-ground.
Grading: A-F or CR/NC (student choice).
Course Typically Offered: Variable Intermittently

Student Learning Outcomes - Upon successful completion of this course students will be able to:

Students will gain an appreciation for the role that groundwater plays in water budgets for individual basins, for California, for the U.S., and in the global water cycle.
Students will gain an understanding of the hydraulic properties of different geologic materials.
Students will be able to describe the fundamental differences between unconfined and confined aquifer systems, qualitatively and quantitatively.
Students will be able to apply Darcy’s Law to determine the rate of groundwater flow in different geologic media.
Students will be able to manipulate data from a pump test or slug test to determine drawdown or transmissivity.
Students will gain an understanding of the hydrologic and geologic factors that govern regional groundwater transport.
Students will gain and understanding of the source of the most abundant ions in groundwater.
Students will become familiar with common groundwater contaminants and the problems associated with their occurrence in drinking water and with remediation.