Using Electrical Resistivity Tomography to Reconstruct Alpine Spring Supply: A Case Study from the Montellina Spring (Quincinetto, NW Alps, Italy)

Both studies and conservation of mountain waters are essential because of the primary role of mountains as “natural water towers” for the preservation and optimized exploitation of water reserves. In particular, under climate change stresses which induce reductions in rain and snow precipitation, especially in areas with rain-snow transition zones, increasing knowledge of the geological setting and hydrogeological context of mountain springs is pivotal for their preservation and optimized exploitation. However, the complexity and remoteness of mountain waters make them difficult to conceptualize and analyse, both observationally and instrumentally. In this context, using detailed geological mapping and hydrogeological surveys, geophysical data can provide useful information on the subsurface setting. Electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) surveys are utilized in this work for the investigation of the Montellina Spring (MS), which is located in the low Dora Baltea Valley and represents a significant drinking water source in the alpine context. Geophysical surveys, complemented by specific geological and hydrogeological observations, allowed a detailed reconstruction of the water circuit that supplies the spring along an articulated buried glacial valley and a loose bedrock in a DSGSD (deep-seated gravitational slope deformation) environment. The methodological approach also provides the basis for its successful application in similar geological contexts.