Knowledge of the spatial distribution of hydraulic conductivity (K)
within an aquifer is critical for reliable predictions of solute
transport and the development of effective groundwater management
and/or remediation strategies. While core analyses and hydraulic
logging can provide highly detailed information, such information
is inherently localized around boreholes that tend to be sparsely
distributed throughout the aquifer volume. Conversely, larger-scale
hydraulic experiments like pumping and tracer tests provide relatively
low-resolution estimates of K in the investigated subsurface region.
As a result, traditional hydrogeological measurement techniques contain
a gap in terms of spatial resolution and coverage, and they are often
alone inadequate for characterizing heterogeneous aquifers. Geophysical
methods have the potential to bridge this gap. The recent increased
interest in the application of geophysical methods to hydrogeological
problems is clearly evidenced by the formation and rapid growth of
the domain of hydrogeophysics over the past decade (e.g., Rubin and
Hubbard, 2005).