Automated Groundwater Contamination Analysis: A Geoprocessing Tool for Visualizing AshTracker Data
Presentation Time: Mon, 04/24/2023 - 19:00
Keywords: Workflow Automation, Groundwater Analysis, Python Scripting, Map Series, Coal Ash
The United States Environmental Protection Agency requires groundwater monitoring of over 200 coal ash disposal sites, relying on data collected from tens of thousands of well samples. Being able to convert that data into insightful analysis is crucial to making informed decisions regarding the magnitude of contamination and focus on planning for site improvement. Environmental scientists are key to maintaining such sites and need analysis tools to support their research. The geoprocessing tool created here provides a complete output of isoconcentration maps, providing visualizations of each contaminant required to be monitored by the EPA at coal ash sites. The analysis is completed using open source Ashtracker data and ArcGIS Pro. Python scripting is used to automate the analysis, which not only allows geologists to visualize the subsurface damage, but also eliminates human error introduced by the manual entry of data, as well as provides a uniform output across all site evaluations. In addition to automating the process through python scripting, creating an ArcGIS geoprocessing tool rather than a standalone script makes the analysis user-friendly for a complete team of environmental professionals. By implementing the groundwater contamination analysis tool, these teams have a better understanding of what lies beneath the surface and can take action to improve such a vital resource.
