Ground Water Assessment Development And Management

A comprehensive, self-sufficient and up-to-date text providing complete information on various aspects of groundwater assessment, development and management. It gives a balanced presentation of theory and field practice using a multidisciplinary approach to aid in solving problems from a variety of data bases. The coverage in this book includes: Aquifer tests and evaluation of aquifer properties Stream gauging and measurement of discharge and stage of wells Ground water exploration Geomorphic and geologic control on ground water Estimation of individual components of ground water recharge, discharge and ground water balance Ground water development and management. The book contains a large number of figures, examples of complex interpretative techniques and methodologies, case histories, and problems along with answers. With its integrated, multidisciplinary approach, the book would serve as a valuable reference book to hydrogeologists, geologists, geophysicists, hydrologists, hydrometerologists, and irrigation, agricultural and drilling engineers, as well as those concerned with planning and decision making. Researchers and students would also find this an indispensable text.

This book deals with the challenges for efficient groundwater management, with a focus on South Asia and India, providing a balanced presentation of theory and field practice using a multidisciplinary approach. Groundwater of South Asia is increasingly confronted with overuse and deteriorating quality and therefore requires urgent attention. Management of the stressed groundwater systems is an extremely complex proposition because of the intricate hydrogeological set-up of the region. Strategies for sustainable management must involve a combination of supply-side and demand-side measures depending on the regional setting and socio-economic situations. As a consequence, the challenges of efficient groundwater management require not only a clear understanding of the aquifer configuration, but also demand for the development of a comprehensive database of the groundwater occurrences and flow systems in each hydrogeological setting. In addition, drilling and well construction methods that are appropriate to different hydrogeological formations need to be implemented as well as real-time monitoring of the status of the groundwater use. Also corrective measures for groundwater that is threatened with depletion and quality deterioration need to be installed. Finally, the legal framework of groundwater needs to be rearticulated according to the common property aspect of groundwater. These challenges should revolve around effective groundwater governance by creating an atmosphere to support and empower community-based systems of decision-making and revisit the existing legal framework and groundwater management institutions by fostering community initiatives. This book is relevant for academics, professionals, administrators, policy makers, and economists concerned with various aspects of groundwater science and management.

The aim of this book is to document for the first time the dimensions and requirements of effective integrated groundwater management (IGM). Groundwater management is a formidable challenge, one that remains one of humanity’s foremost priorities. It has become a largely non-renewable resource that is overexploited in many parts of the world. In the 21st century, the issue moves from how to simply obtain the water we need to how we manage it sustainably for future generations, future economies, and future ecosystems. The focus then becomes one of understanding the drivers and current state of the groundwater resource, and restoring equilibrium to at-risk aquifers. Many interrelated dimensions, however, come to bear when trying to manage groundwater effectively. An integrated approach to groundwater necessarily involves many factors beyond the aquifer itself, such as surface water, water use, water quality, and ecohydrology. Moreover, the science by itself can only define the fundamental bounds of what is possible; effective IGM must also engage the wider community of stakeholders to develop and support policy and other socioeconomic tools needed to realize effective IGM. In order to demonstrate IGM, this book covers theory and principles, embracing: 1) an overview of the dimensions and requirements of groundwater management from an international perspective; 2) the scale of groundwater issues internationally and its links with other sectors, principally energy and climate change; 3) groundwater governance with regard to principles, instruments and institutions available for IGM; 4) biophysical constraints and the capacity and role of hydroecological and hydrogeological science including water quality concerns; and 5) necessary tools including models, data infrastructures, decision support systems and the management of uncertainty. Examples of effective, and failed, IGM are given. Throughout, the importance of the socioeconomic context that connects all effective IGM is emphasized. Taken as a whole, this work relates the many facets of effective IGM, from the catchment to global perspective.

Groundwater development has shown phenomenal progress in our country during past few decades. There has been a vast improvement in the perception, outlook and significance of groundwater resource. Groundwater is a dynamic system. It is dynamic in the sense that the state of any hydrological system is changing with time, and in the sense that we are continually developing new scientific techniques to evaluate these systems. The total annual replenishable groundwater resource of India is around 431 BCM. Inspite of the national scenario on the availability of groundwater being favourable, there are many areas in the country facing scarcity of water. This is because of the unplanned groundwater development resulting in fall of water levels, failure of wells, and salinity ingress in coastal areas. The development and over-exploitation of groundwater resources in certain parts of the country have raised the concern and need for judicious and scientific resource management and conservation. A complexity of factors - hydrogeological, hydrological and climatological, control the groundwater occurrence and movement. The precise assessment of recharge and discharge is rather difficult, as no techniques are currently available for their direct measurements. Hence, the methods employed for groundwater resource estimation are all indirect. Groundwater being a dynamic and replenishable resource is generally estimated based on the component of annual recharge, which could be subjected to development by means of suitable groundwater structures. Mathematical models are tools, which are frequently used in studying groundwater systems. In general, mathematical models are used to simulate (or to predict) the groundwater flow. Predictive simulations must be viewed as estimates, dependent upon the quality and uncertainty of the input data. Model conceptualization is the process in which data describing field conditions are assembled in a systematic way to describe groundwater flow processes at a site. The model conceptualization aids in determining the modelling approach and which model software to use. Taking the base from my lecture notes delivered in various training courses during last 26 years and further editing and additions, I have developed this book titled “Groundwater Assessment and Modelling”. The book is intended to provide a comprehensive treatise related to assessment and modelling of groundwater. It includes chapters on assessment of groundwater potential, groundwater data requirement and analysis, basic concepts and guidelines for groundwater modelling, groundwater modelling software, modelling of unsaturated flow, modelling of sea water intrusion, and impact of climate change on groundwater resources. I hope this book will be quite useful for undergraduate and postgraduate students (water resources engineering), field engineers and researchers working in the area of assessment, development and management of groundwater resources.

Groundwater Resource Development describes the basic steps involved in the development of a groundwater resource in the search for productive aquifers. This book discusses groundwater exploration, construction and testing of water wells, water quality and pollution considerations, and groundwater management. This text is comprised of 10 chapters and begins by presenting the steps in the evaluation, development, and management of an aquifer for water supply. The reader is then introduced to the fundamentals of groundwater, with emphasis on their origin and occurrence as well as the influence of porosity and permeability on groundwater accumulation, migration, and distribution. The chapters that follow focus on groundwater exploration, assessment of aquifer recharge and potential well yield, and factors affecting the quality of groundwater. The issues to be considered in well design and construction are also highlighted, along with aquifer hydraulics and pumping tests, groundwater pollution, and optimum management of groundwater resources. This text concludes with a chapter on techniques used in modeling the response of a groundwater reservoir. This book will be of value to geologists, civil engineers, environmental scientists, mathematicians, chemists, water well contractors, and others involved in the profession of water engineering.

The hydrogeological aspect of groundwater science is universal and applied in nature to have a sustainable water resource development with social, economic, ecological, cultural and aesthetic background. Since 99% of the world's fresh available water is groundwater; yet, the majority of financial resources are directed to surface water found in rivers and lakes. This serious imbalance requires urgent redress. This volume is addresses the issue to facilitate the joint analysis of groundwater management studies and problems faced by scientist, engineers, managers and other scholars from natural and applied sciences. Significant financial support is required for basic groundwater research if sustainable development is to be a realistic goal. As a fresh water resource, groundwater has major advantages over surface water. This is the basic idea that explicitly appears in almost all paper of this book. The authors have tried to focus their task on those topics that seemed to us more urgent and relevant and have paid much attention to questions related to management of aquifers, groundwater pollution, the long-term problems and the key issues in developing countries, where majority of world population live and where at present enormous groundwater abstraction occurs. We (editors) have dissipated proper information in a systematic scientific manner to make the concept of groundwater management and sustainability understandable to everyone, through this book. The book provides a platform to bring together earth scientists, professionals from chemical and engineering science disciplines, public health professionals and social scientists involved with the management and development of groundwater resources. The book is expected to reflect the current understanding of all the issues related to management of groundwater resources and their sustainable use.

Written by renowned experts in the field, this book assesses the status of groundwater models and defines models and modeling needs in the 21st century. It reviews the state of the art in model development and application in regional groundwater management, unsaturated flow/multiphase flow and transport, island modeling, biological and virus transport, and fracture flow. Both deterministic and stochastic aspects of unsaturated flow and transport are covered. The book also introduces a unique assessment of models as analysis and management tools for groundwater resources. Topics covered include model vs. data uncertainty, accuracy of the dispersion/convection equation, protocols for model testing and validation, post-audit studies, and applying models to karst aquifers.

Groundwater beneath cities is important. Water utilities and private abstractors use is it as a secure source of water-supply and municipal authorities have to cope with it when planning sanitation and using underground space for building and transportation infrastructure, but all too often neither have a comprehensive understanding. This Guidebook aims to highlight what water utilities and municipal government can do to improve groundwater assessment, management and monitoring to avoid experiencing ‘nasty surprises’. Groundwater, especially from deeper aquifers, is a critical resource for enhancing urban water-supply security under climate-change stress. But to achieve its use sustainably will require adaptive promotion of resource management and protection, according to local circumstances. In recent times municipal governments are making much more use of urban subsurface space (especially down to 15-metres depth) for construction. Traditionally the drainage and stability of such structures were achieved by individual site investigation, but today a more coordinated approach is needed to managing shallow groundwater conditions. The Guidebook is divided into three complementary parts: Part A is intended for guidance of water-utility, together with water-resource agency and municipal sanitation department, staff working to improve urban water-supply resilience, with its inevitable requirement to get more involved in groundwater management. Part B is intended for guidance of municipal government authorities working to improve the design and execution of urban infrastructure to avoid potentially costly subsurface drainage issues, structural instability and groundwater flooding problems. Part C provides a series of case histories on urban groundwater management from around the world.