Assessment of the intrinsic vulnerability to groundwater contamination in the M-IV, Basin, Cuba

The M-IV Basin, located in the north of the Matanzas province, is a karst basin of great importance for the Cuba socioeconomic development. The groundwater of this basin supplies the C6rdenas city, the tourist pole of Varadero and part of the Matanzas province. The objective of this article was to develop the intrinsic vulnerability map to determine the susceptibility to contamination of the groundwater in this basin. The RISK method was applied, which has been implemented to assess karst aquifer vulnerability. The vulnerability map obtained by this method, at a scale of 1: 100 000, revealed that 75 % of the basin presents high and very high vulnerability. These results correspond with the geological nature of the basin, with results reported by other authors in the studied area and the diagnosis of the principal problems identified in the 2016-2020 Environmental Strategy of the province. The RISK method proved its effectiveness and resolving power.