IMVUL · Towards Improved Groundwater Vulnerability Assessment

There has been an increasing realization over the last 30 years that to preserve water quality and quantity in Europe, measures at both European and national levels are needed. Our groundwater resources are at risk from a wide variety of stresses including point and diffuse sources of contamination, over-abstraction and saline intrusion. Minimizing this risk requires a good understanding of the physical, chemical and biological processes involved and the development of tools to assess groundwater vulnerability, aid water management and design protection strategies. To meet the challenges imposed by the new EU Water and Ground Water Framework Directives, the water industry throughout Europe is already significantly expanding, creating an increasing demand for appropriately educated graduates. The proposed ITN network, IMVUL, is aimed at training researchers in the major issues and processes relevant to groundwater vulnerability. The network consists of 8 partners in the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Italy, Israel and Norway and 13 associated partners from the water industry. The research objectives are to increase our understanding of the fundamental processes relevant to groundwater vulnerability and develop improved prediction tools that can contribute to the protection and sustainable use of Europe's groundwater resources. This will be achieved through investigations of case study aquifers and their vulnerability issues, laboratory experiments of contaminant transport in the subsurface, and numerical and analytical modelling of the processes pertinent to groundwater vulnerability. The proposed network will contribute to satisfying a growing skill demand in groundwater research and the water industry by producing graduates with not only a sound knowledge of the scientific basis of groundwater vulnerability, but also good investigatory skills through their research experience and additional training relevant to the water industry.