DC Resistivity Sounding for Groundwater Development in Leogane, Haiti

The residents of Leogane, Haiti (Pop. 90,000) have historically relied on shallow hand-excavated wells as a source of water. Until recently, these wells were productive. Leogane is near the epicenter of the 2010 Haiti Earthquake. In the aftermath of the earthquake, humanitarian funds poured in from around the world and the streets of downtown Leogane were improved using some of these funds. This improvement included the construction of 11 km of paved roads and 2 km of storm water drainage structures to mitigate flooding and waterborne disease. After construction, many of the shallow wells in Leogane, some of which had been productive for centuries, dried up. It is believed that the pavement and drainage structures disrupted groundwater recharge and negatively impacted the performance of the water wells. This situation has created a need to assess groundwater conditions to move forward with well remediation in Leogane. Geotechnical drill rigs traditionally used for groundwater exploration are relatively inaccessible in Haiti, so this project is proposed to assess hydrogeological conditions in a cost-effective manner using a non-intrusive geophysical approach. The goals of the proposed project are to 1) perform geophysical DC resistivity testing to aid in understanding subsurface hydrogeological conditions and develop a strategy to remediate the dry water wells, 2) train engineers active in Haiti to perform the testing and analysis using DC resistivity equipment and software that will be donated to them after the project and 3) provide education to Haitian engineering faculty and students on how to apply engineering geophysics towards groundwater development. The long-term goal is to enhance Haitian capabilities and self-sufficiency with respect groundwater development in the future.