Study on Infiltration and its Relationship with the Geology of the Metropolitan Area of San Salvador, El Salvador

Abstract

In the Metropolitan Area of San Salvador resources as water for human consumption is at the point of stress with climate change and increased urban grown. Changes currently occur in the water cycle related to decreasing infiltration and increasing runoff. The study of geological layers where hydraulics works might be feasible to construct or project, is the main objective of this research taking into account all the possible affectations or issues in the site or even in near infrastructure like buildings. Soil representative samples were tested in the field and in laboratory. Results indicate that the soils are of medium-low permeability and that water infiltrated in surface layers might be moving horizontally due the lithology in the area. With geotechnical and geological information is possible to obtain a preliminary zoning and some criteria for the artificial infiltration based in the soil conditions and permeability.