GROUNDWATER EXPLORATION FOR RESIDENTIAL AND HUMANITARIAN USES IN THE NORD OUEST DEPARTMENT, HAITI

A focused groundwater prospecting investigation was conducted in 2007 for a residential/resort development on the Northern coast of Haiti. The investigation resulted in the discovery of a significant untapped aquifer that will not only benefit the development but also the lives and economic health of the region. This area of the Nord Ouest Department of Haiti, with a population in excess of 100,000 was previously provided water via only springs, streams and a rare alluvial well. Most water sources are contaminated and are ephemeral within a calendar year. Contaminated water and water scarcity is the cause of a large percentage of the deaths in Haiti.

An intensive investigation combining research, geologic mapping and the evaluation of springs and streams was combined with GPS technology and a Controlled Source Audio Magnetotellurics / Magnetotellurics (CSAMT/MT) geophysical survey to site a well at the optimum to intersect the suspected aquifer unit at drillable depth. Investigation travel, security, shipping of equipment, and site access for well drilling equipment were significant logistical hurdles to accomplishing the assignment.

A 320 foot well was drilled and it yielded 620 gpm for a period of several hours during first production. The water level in the well recovered to within three hundreds of a foot after thirty seconds and the aquifer will support pumpage in excess of 1,000 gpm in the immediate vicinity of the well. The development, which is still in the planning and design stage, has facilitated the supply of water to over 1,000 residents in the area with the anticipated future supply of over 13,000 residents along the planned pipeline from the well to the development. The discovery of the aquifer could provide drinking water to tens of thousands of people in need within the region. Sustainability investigations and further aquifer development is ongoing.