Hamed, and 5 co-authors, reported in early 2010 that major ion geochemistry and environmental isotopes were used to identify the origins and the mineralisation processes of groundwater flowing within the three aquifer levels of the multilayer system of the Gafsa-south mining district (Southwestern Tunisia). It has been demonstrated that the groundwater was characterized by a Ca–Mg–SO4 water type. Geochemical pattern is mainly controlled by the dissolution of halite, gypsum and/or anhydrite as well as by the incongruent dissolution of dolomite.
∂18O and ∂2H values are much lower than the isotopic signature of regional precipitation and fall close to the meteoric water lines, indicating that groundwaters have not been significantly affected by evaporation or mineral–water reactions. The distribution of stable and radiogenic isotopes (∂18O, ∂2H, ∂13C and 14C) within the aquifer levels suggests that the deep confined aquifer receives a significant modern recharge at higher altitudes, while, the shallow unconfined aquifer has been mainly recharged under cooler paleoclimatic condition, likely during Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene humid periods. However, water from the intermediate confined/unconfined aquifer have composite isotopic signatures, highlighting that they a mixture of the two first end-members.
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