Geofísica aplicada ao mapeamento de aquíferos da Região Metropolitana de Belém

Abstract

Today, about 46% of the drinkable water consumed in the city of Belém is underground water, showing the great importance of this source, even in an area that is rich in surface water as the amazon region. This importance is due to a failure in executing of an established planning. In addition, the costs of works of explotation of superficial waters are very high. Thus, the alternative for Belém has been the underground water, as a good, healthy and economic palliative. The existence of an enormous amount of water resources in the Barreiras sediments and the Pirabas formation contributes to this alternative. The former were deposited in fluvial and estuary environment, while the Pirabas formation possesses facies of estuary, mangrove and oceanic origin. In the presented context, it is necessary to investigate such resources to obtain an optimum benefit from them. For this end, two geophysical methodologies were integrated: the Vertical Electric Soundings (VES) and Geophysical Well Logging, using gamma rays, spontaneous potential and electric resistance. Two aquifer environments can be discerned. The first one extends to nearly 160 m of depth, and comprises sandy bodies in forms of channels and lenses, interrupted or not, imbedded in a shaly matrix. The second one is characterized by extensive sandy beds with lenses of clay, and its depth extends from 160 m up to 285 m, approximately. The consumption of water of the superior aquifer is adequate for residences and condominiums, because of the high cost of great depth wells. The public provisioning should use the inferior aquifer, due to its high discharges (larger than 100 m3/h) and its water of better quality, protected of anthropic actions, as it is being done.