Estimating contaminant mass discharge: A field comparison of the multilevel point measurement and the integral pumping investigation approaches and their uncertainties

In this field study, two approaches to assess contaminant mass discharge were compared: the sampling of multilevel wells (MLS) and the integral groundwater investigation (or integral pumping test, IPT) that makes use of the concentration-time series obtained from pumping wells. The MLS approached used concentrations, hydraulic conductivity and gradient rather than direct chemical flux measurements, while the IPT made use of a simplified analytical inversion. The two approaches were applied at a control plane located approximately 40 m downgradient of a gasoline source at Canadian Forces Base Borden, Ontario, Canada. The methods yielded similar estimates of the mass discharging across the control plane. The sources of uncertainties in the mass discharge in each approach were evaluated, including the uncertainties inherent in the underlying assumptions and procedures. The maximum uncertainty of the MLS method was about 67%, and about 28% for the IPT method in this specific field situation. For the MLS method, the largest relative uncertainty (62%) was attributed to the limited sampling density (0.63 points/m2), through a novel comparison with a denser sampling grid nearby. A five-fold increase of the sampling grid density would have been required to reduce the overall relative uncertainty for the MLS method to about the same level as that for the IPT method. Uncertainty in the complete coverage of the control plane provided the largest relative uncertainty (37%) in the IPT method. While MLS or IPT methods to assess contaminant mass discharge are attractive assessment tools, the large relative uncertainty in either method found for this reasonable well monitored and simple aquifer suggests that results in more complex plumes in more heterogeneous aquifers should be viewed with caution.

Research Highlights
► Mass discharge was measured by the multilevel sampling and integral pumping methods.
► The calculated total BTEX mass discharges agreed within about 8%.
► The uncertainty of the IPT mass discharge was lower than that of the MLS method.
► The density of the sampling grid was the main source of uncertainty in the MLS method.