Palaeohydrogeological Data Analysis and Model Testing (PADAMOT)

What is palaeohydrogeology?

Palaeohydrogeology aims to understand past conditions that have determined the movements and compositions of groundwaters.

"Palaeohydrogeology is a combination of observations on hydrochemical and isotopic differences in various groundwater zones or bodies, mineralogical data on the rock formations and the hydraulic properties of the same formations, which are then compiled to allow interpretation of the evolution of the rock-water system over long time intervals in the past."

(Proceedings of Symposium 'Palaeohydrological Methods and their Applications for Radioactive Waste Disposal', OECD-Nuclear Energy Agency, Paris, 1993).

The time intervals of interest in palaeohydrogeology range from the short timescales (100's of years) of man's influence on groundwaters to the very long timescales (10's to 100's of millions of years) of geological processes.