77-3 Proactive Groundwater Monitoring at a Major Industrial Complex in Western Tennessee

Session: Groundwater and Sustainability: Integrating Science, Technology, and Policy

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Groundwater is a precious resource, accounting for more than 26% of freshwater withdrawals in the United States, supporting agriculture, energy production, industrial development and drinking water for over 150 million people. However, groundwater systems are vulnerable to contamination and overexploitation, especially when hydrogeologic information is limited or environmental regulations are minimal. Wellhead Protection Programs were established in 1986 focusing on contamination prevention rather than remediation. Despite this, regulatory classifications often diverge from actual groundwater dynamics, particularly in the case of non-community water systems with large withdrawals. The Mississippi embayment, located in the south-central United States, is a multilayered sedimentary aquifer-aquitard system. It includes highly productive units, such as the middle Claiborne aquifer (e.g., the Memphis aquifer), which is a critical regional water source. In Tennessee, the Memphis aquifer’s high capacity and excellent water quality make it desirable for a wide range of users, including municipal suppliers and major industrial operations, such as TVA, Chemours, xAI, and Ford’s BlueOval City (BOC), a nearly $6 billion electric vehicle and battery manufacturing facility projected to use up to 3 million gallons of Memphis aquifer water per day. In a proactive initiative that goes beyond regulatory requirements, the Megasite Authority of West Tennessee (MAWT) partnered with the Center for Applied Earth Science and Engineering Research (CAESER) to design and implement a groundwater monitoring network in the BOC area. This network includes six newly drilled wells using sonic techniques and two converted test wells for continuous water level and temperature monitoring, and seasonal sampling for water quality and chemistry. Preliminary lithostratigraphic and natural gamma log data indicate that the Memphis aquifer is semi-confined, and the upper protective clay layer (Cook Mountain Formation) is discontinuous across the MAWT area. Groundwater levels have remained generally stable, though localized drawdown of as much as eight feet has been observed near production wells, followed by rapid recovery. Current water quality data show no concerns and are being used to establish baseline conditions. Additionally, a weather station in combination with soil-water sensors and shallow piezometers have been installed at one site to study vadose-zone water movement and potential recharge mechanisms. By exceeding regulatory standards, the MAWT is proactively working to protect one of the region’s most vital water resources: the Memphis aquifer.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Program. Vol. 57, No. 6, 2025

doi: 10.1130/abs/2025AM-9833

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