Apport de la géologie, de l’hydrogéologie et des isotopes de l’environnement à la connaissance des «nappes en creux» du Grand Yaéré (Nord Cameroun) Contribution of geology, hydrogeology and environmental isotopes to the knowledge of ‘‘piezometric depressions’’ of the Grand Yaere (Northern Cameroon)

Résumé

La carte piézométrique de la nappe du Logone-Chari-Tchad met en évidence des anomalies piézométriques interprétées comme des « nappes en creux ». Les informations de l’hydrogéologie et des isotopes de l’environnement conduisent à remettre en question les grandes profondeurs des niveaux statiques observées par certains auteurs dans ces dépressions piézométriques. Les données hydrogéologiques démontrent que dans la zone déprimée de la surface piézométrique, l’aquifère est de type bicouche. Par ailleurs, la distribution des teneurs en isotopes stables (oxygène-18 et deutérium) et en tritium confirme le cloisonnement des aquifères :

• sur la bordure des dépressions, des nappes superficielles biseautent sur un substratum semi-perméable. Ces nappes sont caractérisées par des eaux modernes (teneurs en tritium > 4 UT);

• dans l’axe des dépressions, on a des nappes profondes avec des eaux plus anciennes (teneurs en tritium < 4 UT). Les divers types d’eau correspondent à des modes et à des épisodes de recharge distincts.

La relation δ ²H vs. δ ¹⁸O montre que les effets d’enrichissement par évaporation lors de la recharge des nappes ne sont très marqués que dans les eaux des nappes superficielles dont les niveaux statiques ne dépassent pas 20 m de profondeur. Les dépressions fermées dont les points les plus bas atteignent 60 m sous la surface du sol s’interprètent difficilement dans l’hypothèse d’une reprise évaporatoire.

Il résulte de cette étude que l’absence de dépendance nette entre les niveaux piézométriques superficiels et les niveaux profonds place le problème des anomalies piézométriques du Grand Yaéré dans un contexte totalement différent de celui des anciennes interprétations qui s’appuyaient sur l’hypothèse d’une nappe libre généralisée monocouche. À l’avenir, la construction de la carte piézométrique de la nappe du Logone-Chari-Tchad devra tenir compte de la structure des deux nappes superposées.

Mots clés:

• Cameroun,
• Grand Yaéré,
• nappes en creux,
• hydrogéologie,
• isotopes,
• évaporation

Summary

Piezometric depressions, common in sub-Saharan Africa, are major hydrogeological anomalies manifested by closed curves, pronounced hollows and dips attaining several tens of meters below the regional water table level. The Logone-Chari-Chad piezometric map reveals piezometric anomalies that have been interpreted as depressed aquifers. The depth of the water table is 60 m in the Tagawa-Am Talia axis, 40 m between Louba-Louba and Andirni and 30 m around Yagoua. Factors linked to evaporation are generally thought to be responsible for these depressed zones.

The objective of this study (based on the saturated zone) was: 1) to place the Logone-Chari-Chad piezometric anomalies in their hydrogeological settings, and 2) to evaluate the use of environmental isotopes to explain their formation processes. To achieve our goal, 27 water supply points (8 boreholes and 19 wells) were selected from the borders and centre of the Logone-Chari-Chad depression. Samples were collected between 1989 and 1991. Measurements performed in the field involved static water levels, whereas the laboratory analyses ¹⁸O, ²H and ³H were performed at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) laboratory in Vienna, within the framework of the project RAF/8/012 funded by IAEA.

The new geological and hydrogeological data demonstrate that in the depressed zone of the piezometric surface, the aquifer has two layers. In contrast, the Logone-Chari-Chad piezometric map was previously drawn considering the aquifer as a single-layer. From a hydrochemical point of view, the groundwater in the Logone-Chari-Chad aquifer is stratified: calcium bicarbonate type water was found at the surface (shallow groundwater), whereas sodium carbonate type water was found at depth (deeper groundwater).

Seasonal piezometric fluctuations of 1.5 to 3 m have been observed in the shallow groundwater. In the deeper groundwater, they range from 0.20 to 0.30 m. The difference in the values of water table fluctuation leads not only to variations in the mode of groundwater circulation, but also to variations in the hydrodynamic properties of aquifers, such as transmissivity.

The distribution in stable isotope contents (¹⁸O, ²H and ³H) confirmed the compartmentalization of aquifers. The correlation between ³H and ¹⁸O showed that there are two water types, with different recharge modes and episodes. On the border of the depression, shallow groundwater pinches out on the semi-permeable substratum, resulting in a tritium content greater than 4 UT. In the depression axis, there is deeper groundwater with a tritium content below 4 UT.

The relationship between ²H and ¹⁸O shows that the enrichment effects of evaporation at the time of recharge are very pronounced only in the shallow groundwater, where the static level does not exceed 20 m below the soil surface. The closed piezometric depressions, whose deepest point attains 60 m below the soil surface, cannot be explained by the presence of intense evaporation. The variation in tritium content with respect to the static level shows that in the depressed zone, the first 20 m are characterized by a tritium content greater than 4 UT, whereas at depths of 30 m or more, tritium contents are lower than 4 UT.

The absence of dependence between shallow and deep piezometric levels invalidates the interpretation of great water depths proposed in previous studies of the piezometric depression of the Logone-Chari-Chad water table. Thus, the hypothesis that the Logone-Chari-Chad is a single-layer system should be abandoned. The future construction of the piezometric map of the Logone-Chari-Chad water table should take into account the structure and lithology of the two superimposed layers.

Keys-words:

• Cameroon,
• Grand Yaéré,
• depressed groundwater,
• hydrogeology,
• isotopes,
• evaporation