This is a presentation about the overall hydrogeological conditions of the state of Kerala. Also, I've presented here a case study related to the groundwater resource (of the open-dug well) contamination problem of Kodiyathur village.

1. KERALA
കേരളം
HYDROGEOLOGICAL ASPECTS
Ritanuka Ghosh
UG III Sem 5
19215210005

2. HYDROGEOLOGY OF KERALA

3. Kerala State lies as a narrow strip of land
along the southwest corner of India
bordered by Western Ghats on eastern
side and Lakshadweep Sea on the
western side
Though the State is blessed with plenty of water
resources and rainfall, the availability of water
resources, especially groundwater is not uniform
through out. It varies from place to place. The State
has varied hydrogeological and geomorphological
characteristics and hence the groundwater
potentials differ from place to place
HYDROLOGICAL
CONDITION
About 62% of the population of Kerala depend on ground water for the purpose of drinking through dug wells
and borewells/tube wells.

4. Ground water occurs under phreatic, semi-confined and confined conditions in the above formations. The weathered crystalline,
laterites and the alluvial formations form the major phreatic aquifers, whereas the deep fractures in the crystalline and the granular
zones in the Tertiary sedimentary formations form the potential confined to semi-confined aquifers.
1. The shallow aquifers of the crystalline rocks are
made up of the highly decomposed weathered zone
or partly weathered and fractured rock.
2. The depth to water level: 2 to 16 meters below
ground level (mbgl); yield of the well: 2 to 10 m3 per
day
1. Ground water occurs under phreatic condition in the
shallow zone and under semi-confined to confined
conditions in the deeper aquifers.
2. The Tertiary formation of Kerala coast is divided into
four distinct beds viz. Alleppey, Vaikom, Quilon and
Warkali
3. The depth to water level in this shallow zone: 3.0 to
27 mbgl; yield of the well: 500 lpd to 10 m3 per day.

5. • In Kerala, nearly two decades ago,
groundwater exploitations were restricted to
unconfined aquifer through dug wells.
• Presently with the advent of technology,
high-speed rigs and quality deterioration of
surface water have resulted in uncontrolled
exploitation of groundwater resources.
• Major portion of these dug wells gets dried -
up during the summer months, causing
seasonal water scarcity which affects public
water supply. The increasing demand of
water year after year has also resulted
pressure on aquifer systems in the state
Increasing urbanization and
growing dependence on
groundwater for irrigation and
industry has called for judicious
and planned exploitation of the
groundwater resources.

6. GROUNDWATER RELATED CHALLENGES
AND ISSUES

7. In general, groundwater quality of Kerala is very good. But with the rapid growth in population, urbanization, industrialization and other
developmental activities, groundwater resources have become vulnerable to depletion and quality degradation.
Overexploitation related problems Quality related problems
 Incidence of high fluoride(0–5.75 ppm) is reported from Palghat and
Alleppey district. In Palghat district high fluoride is reported from deep
sedimentary aquifer whereas in Alleppey it is noticed in crystalline.
 Higher content of nitrate and iron is reported in groundwater in many
parts of the state.
 Acidity of well water also has increased alarmingly.
 Bacterial contamination is being reported from all districts in dug wells
and is growing in alarming stage.
 Open wells of Kerala have the problem of bacteriological
contamination and studies have shown that faecal contamination is
present in 95% of drinking water wells.
 Once in ground water, pesticides and their degradation products can
persist for years, depending upon the chemical structure of the
compounds and the environmental conditions
 Due to rapid urbanization The water level decline during post
monsoon period is attributed to base flow, higher groundwater
development for various uses and change in land use pattern.
Similarly the piezometric head of Tube wells in some towns show
a decline trend.
 Since these tube wells are being pumped continuously for urban
water supply this may leads to some environmental problems like
land subsidence
 Damage to aquifers due to compaction, risk of ground subsidence
due to inter-relationship between withdrawal and downward
trend in water levels due to overdraft conditions.
Reference: Shaji E

8. There is growing concern throughout India about the contamination of groundwater as a result of geogenic and human activities.
In India, groundwater resources are being utilized for drinking, irrigation and industrial purposes.
The causes of groundwater contamination include use, spillage, or disposal of pesticides, fertilizers, petroleum hydrocarbons,
industrial chemicals, and waste products.
The contamination can also result from geologic sources and changes in the existing land use. Kerala is strongly dependent upon
groundwater and has considerable value both for its economic and social uses (i.e. drinking water, water supply system,
agriculture, industry, and recreation), and for its role in maintaining a range of ecosystems at the surface and below ground.
The contamination of groundwater can have adverse
effects on these uses, ultimately leading, as water quality
deteriorates, to the groundwater being unable to support
or maintain these beneficial uses. In most cases this
degradation is irreversible
Also when large quantity of freshwater is
withdrawn faster than it can be recharged from
these aquifers, hydraulic gradient encourages flow
of seawater towards pumped wells.

9. HOW CAN THE GROUNDWATER RELATED ISSUES BE SOLVED?
 Risk and vulnerability assessment;
 Land use planning and management;
 Regulatory measures (e.g. licensing)
 Economic and market mechanisms (e.g. trading)
 Human, financial and technical resourcing
 Institutional arrangements
 Availability of appropriate regulatory tools
 Community awareness and education
There is no use talking about the problems unless you talk about the solutions
-Betty Williams
In the context of spatial and temporal variations in water availability, increasing water pollution and the steady increase in water demand
over the years, the management action plans should be aimed at the improvement of surface water and groundwater availability. So in
this presentation there should be some of the recent probable thoughts that might mitigate the current groundwater related problems
the state is facing, in near future. Here are some of those:
Additionally, there is a need for a greater awareness
of groundwater, its key role in supporting a range of
economic, social and environmental values, its
significance in the hydrological cycle and the need to
protect these valuable but invisible resource.
 The approach should also account for managing interactions between water quality and quantity and between surface and
groundwater. In the development of groundwater management plans, strategies to protect groundwater from contamination
and maintain its Beneficial Use (including ecosystem values) should be included.
 The effectiveness of groundwater quality management and protection relies on enforcement and a comprehensive, targeted
monitoring program. Since monitoring often must be undertaken over the long term, it often suffers budget cuts or is neglected
due to lack of resources. However, if baseline trends are not known, early response to potentially adverse impacts is not
possible. Monitoring is a key activity to enable identification and protection of groundwater from pollution.

10. A CASE STUDY: Groundwater quality in
Kodiyathur Village, Kerala

11. • A study conducted in a village in Kozhikode district of Kerala
highlights the need for standards while locating wells to prevent
groundwater contamination.
• The paper titled 'Sanitation mapping of groundwater
contamination in a rural village of India' published in the Journal
of Environmental Protection, describes the findings of a study
conducted in the village.
AIM: To assess the quality of groundwater in the village using microbial counts and its
relationship with the distances of the wells to latrines.
Geographic Information System (GIS) tools were used to demonstrate spatial
relationships for a better understanding of problems and to help come up with possible
solutions.
REASON
OF
STUDY

12.  Causal observation indicated that people live in
crowded surroundings and most wells are situated
close to latrines. Refuse dumps, pit latrines and open
sewers were commonplace. Many of them were left
uncovered and maintenance was not a priority.
CONDITION
OF THE
WATER
RESOURCES
 Kodiyathur village suffers from serious water problems. The
village has access to piped water supplied from municipal
treatment plants.
 Most of the treatment facilities fail to meet the water requirements of the community either due to lack of infrastructure or lack
of maintenance and sometimes, merely because it is unable to cater to the increased population. Here, open wells assume
immense significance as most households use them as the primary drinking water source.
All these clearly suggest that the possibility of contaminants entering into the wells in the area was rather high

13. High bacterial contamination: The results of
bacteriological analysis of well water from the village
showed that all the wells were contaminated with
coliforms and other bacteria. Wells in this area were
constantly exposed to contamination from human
activities. The layout of the houses was such that the
distance between wells and latrines were very
minimal.
WHAT
WAS
FOUND
High dependence on open wells: More than 95% of the
residents from the study area depended on open wells for
domestic needs. Bore wells were the second major source
of water. Drying up of wells on the onset of summer was a
common problem in the area.
Simple treatment methods: Common methods of water
treatment adopted by respondents included boiling,
chlorination and filtration
High incidence of water borne diseases: Primary
Health Centre data showed that acute diarrheal
dysentery was the most commonly reported water-
borne disease, followed by hepatitis. As high as 71% of
the residents reported to have various water borne
diseases had a well to latrine distance between 4 - 6
meters.

14. References: -
Groundwater quality of Kerala – Are we on the brink? By Shaji E; Disaster, Risk and Vulnerability
Conference 2011 School of Environmental Sciences
AQUIFER SYSTEMS OF KERALA; GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WATER RESOURCES
CENTRAL GROUND WATER BOARD
Surface Water and Groundwater Resources of Kerala: Management Issues, Policies, Future Strategies by
E.Shaji and A.P.Pradeepkumar
CHANGES IN GROUNDWATER UTILIZATION IN KERALA – CAUSES & CONSEQUENCES by
Dr.Nandakumaran.P
Kerala's groundwater contamination source revealed by P. U. Megha; P. Kavya; S. Murugan; P.
S. Harikumar