Introduction to physical, chemical and biological processes
which occur in soil and sediment under the combination of
anthropogenic inputs and natural events (rainfall, infiltration,...)
Soil and groundwater contamination can occur by infiltration,
direct migration, recharge from surface waters and interaquifer
exchange. In broad terms, three processes govern the extent
to which chemical constituents migrate in groundwater:
(1) advection, movement caused by the flow of ground water
(2) dispersion, movement caused by the irregular mixing
of waters during advection and (3) retardation, principally
chemical mechanisms that occur during advection, which
tend to slow down the rate of contaminant migration. Furthermore
the fate of the contaminants will be controlled by their
hydrochemical behaviour, the properties of geologic materials,
pH and Eh, leachate composition and source characteristics.
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