Observations of Tide- and Wave-Driven Groundwater Dynamics in Meso-Tidal Sandy Beach
2024
Emilie Woussen | Damien Sous | Nadia Sénéchal
This study focuses on the non-hydrostatic groundwater dynamics of a meso-tidal sandy beach under the influence of tides and waves. A field campaign was conducted at Lacanau Beach, France, during four consecutive tide cycles in March 2022. Groundwater dynamics was monitored based on a network of buried pressure sensors. The data analysis revealed the combined influences of waves and tides on the groundwater circulation. Tidal-scale groundwater flows are predominantly seaward, primarily controlled by the head gradient resulting from a high coastal aquifer. A circulation cell develops under the swash zone and moves across the beachface following the tidal oscillations. On a daily scale per alongshore and vertical units, the observed flow is 2.5 <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msup><mi mathvariant="normal">m</mi><mn>3</mn></msup><mo>.</mo><msup><mi mathvariant="normal">m</mi><mrow><mo>−</mo><mn>2</mn></mrow></msup><mo>.</mo><msup><mi>day</mi><mrow><mo>−</mo><mn>1</mn></mrow></msup></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula>, i.e., 912.5 <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msup><mi mathvariant="normal">m</mi><mn>3</mn></msup><mo>.</mo><msup><mi mathvariant="normal">m</mi><mrow><mo>−</mo><mn>2</mn></mrow></msup><mo>.</mo><msup><mi>year</mi><mrow><mo>−</mo><mn>1</mn></mrow></msup></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula>. Extrapolating the present dataset, it may be expected that combined events, such as drought-induced aquifer depletion with high tides, could lead to beach-scale gradient reversal, potentially causing salinisation of the continental aquifer.
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