| Sumario: | Society's demand for health and environmental care is increasing, requiring the taking of
preventive measures against potential negative impacts produced by agricultural practices,
including the contamination of natural resources by the use of agrochemicals. The objective of this
work was to evaluate the spatial distribution of the vulnerability of aquifers and the level of
protection that the vegetation cover provides to them in the North basin of Mendoza. To this end,
the ecosystem function of Aquifer Protection by Coverage (PAC), included in the ECOSER
protocol, was analyzed. It covers the DRASTIC index, which is based on the application of seven
hydrogeological parameters to determine vulnerability. A great spatial variability of both functions
was obtained on the extension of the basin. Regarding the PAC function, the greatest protection
by the vegetation was found over the area where the type of cover is Native. On the contrary, the
less protection by the vegetal cover, was located entirely within the Agroecosystem, being then the
use of the soil the determining factor of the greater or lesser functional capacity of the ecosystem.
On the other hand, the areas of greatest vulnerability in the confined aquifer area are explained
taking into account the depth of the aquifer and the hydraulic conductivity factor; while in the free
aquifer area, the most influential parameters are the Nature of the unsaturated zone and the
Aquifer Recharge. The sectors with less vulnerability are defined by the Nature of the Unsaturated
Zone parameter. The information generated constitutes a basis for environmental management,
land use planning and the development of good agricultural practices
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