Water movement in the unsaturated zone at a low-level radioactive-waste burial site near Barnwell, South Carolina

Technical Report · Sun Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1989

OSTI ID:7118656

Dennehy, K F; McMahon, P B

Four unsaturated-zone monitoring sites and a meteorologic station were installed at the low-level radioactive-waste burial site near Barnwell, South Carolina, to investigate the geohydrologic and climatologic factors affecting water movement in the unsaturated zone. The study site is located in the Atlantic Coastal Plain. A meteorologic station was used to measure precipitation and to calculate actual evapotranspiration using the Bowen ratio method. Tracer tests using sodium chloride were conducted at each monitoring site. Hydrologic properties of unsaturated-zone materials were also determined. Monitoring and model results show that precipitation on trenches infiltrated the trench cap and moved vertically into the trench backfill material.

• Research Organization: Geological Survey, Reston, VA (USA). Water Resources Div.
• OSTI ID: 7118656
• Report Number(s): PB-90-180399/XAB
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
540330* -- Environment
Aquatic-- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport-- (1990-)
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
EVAPORATION
FEDERAL REGION IV
FLUID FLOW
HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY
LOW-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
MANAGEMENT
MASS TRANSFER
MATERIALS
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
METEOROLOGY
MONITORING
NORTH AMERICA
PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS
POLLUTION
RADIATION MONITORING
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
RADIONUCLIDE MIGRATION
SEDIMENTS
SITE SURVEYS
SOUTH CAROLINA
USA
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTES
WATER POLLUTION