Proposed conceptual model for the deep groundwater circulation system within the Gela Fm. aquifer. Credit: Earth and Environment Communications (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s43247-023-01077-w
A multi-institutional team of geoscientists has discovered a deep, ancient underground basin of fresh water beneath part of the Sicilian mountains. In their study, reported in the journal Earth and Environment CommunicationsThe group used publicly available data collected during oil discovery efforts to study groundwater in and around the Gela Formation, beneath the mountains of the island of Sicily.
As the number of people living on the islands increases, scientists continue to search for resources to support them. One of these islands is Sicily, located off the coast of Italy in the Mediterranean Sea. Authorities are concerned about the water supply for a growing population. The researchers therefore undertook a study of underground freshwater reserves which have not yet been exploited.
The researchers analyzed maps and data from previous surveys in search of oil deposits. They discovered what they believe to be a previously unknown aquifer thousands of feet beneath the Hyblean Mountains. They made 3D models of the aquifer to validate their findings and found evidence to suggest that not only is it an aquifer, but it also contains around 17.5 cubic kilometers of water.
The team then sought to explain how so much fresh water could have been trapped beneath a mountain range. They suggest it was trapped there during the Messinian salinity crisis millions of years ago – the 700,000 year period saw a blockage of the Strait of Gibraltar which allowed many parts of the Mediterranean Sea to dry out, exposing the seafloor to rainwater.
The research team suggests that this rainwater seeped into the crust. According to the researchers, this rainwater could have accumulated underground because it was absorbed by the carbonate rock acting like a sponge. When sea levels returned to normal, fresh groundwater was blocked due to seawater pressure.
The researchers also discovered what they think is a likely channel for ancient rainwater: the Malta Escarpment, which extends around eastern Sicily.
More information:
Lorenzo Lipparini et al, Vast resources of refreshed groundwater emplaced during Messinian sea level lowering in southern Sicily, Italy, Earth and Environment Communications (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s43247-023-01077-w
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