Improving the knowledge of pesticide and nitrate transfer processes using age-dating tools (CFC, SF6, 3H) in a volcanic island (Martinique, French West Indies)

Numerous successful examples of CFC and SF6 groundwater dating applications were recently published. However the proposed CFC/SF6 method needs various hydrodynamic parameters that are not always available. In order to predict groundwater-quality trends in areas where the hydrogeological context is poorly known, a dating method using tritium, CFC and SF6 was successfully implemented in Martinique. Hydrogeological understanding is limited in this volcanic island where groundwater contamination by pesticides and nitrate has been recently proven in various areas. A negative correlation was observed between nitrate concentrations and groundwater ages while pesticide contamination showed a more complex schema. Consequently the presence of old groundwater clearly explained the absence or low pesticide and nitrate concentrations in some areas. However a possible degradation of the water quality is to be feared in the future. In view of the relatively long transfer times and the complexity of the remobilization processes of solutes, the expected effects of any modifications in the use of fertilizers, or of changes in pesticide-use legislation, would take a long time to become apparent.