Subsurface assessment tools generically are field techniques used for the characterisation of key or critical properties in the unsaturated and/or saturated zone of the subsurface, at plot scale to regional scale and beyond. The techniques / instruments can focus both on resource assessment (e.g. aquifer structures, yield, fluid flow paths and residence times, connectivity, recharge/discharge, sustainability) and quality assessments (e.g. physical, chemical, and biological properties, vulnerability, remediation, and again resource sustainability).
This session encourages presentations of recent developments, state-of-the-art tools and techniques, and innovative instrumentation, sampling techniques and measurement/monitoring approaches, focussed on flow and transport issues in the subsurface hydrology and/or aquifer assessment. This may cover measuring and monitoring techniques (e.g. hydraulic testing, applied tracers, indicator techniques, in-situ microcosms, joint methods, etc.) through modelling strategies and/or scaling approaches, taking into account vulnerability, risk, remediation and/or sustainability issues.
We especially encourage contributions related to flux measurements in the field, and the collection of datasets for example aimed at improving parameter identifiability.
We are also interested in exploring the potential roles of isotope signatures and analogue compounds, either used as applied tracers (e.g. in-situ reactive tests) or as natural "fingerprint" tracers for source/provenance and process identification/quantification in the unsaturated and/or saturated zones over various scales. We encourage also contributions particularly using stable isotope fractionation signatures to assess in-situ transformation of contaminants with respect to the extent of conversion and their natural degradation pathways.