Evaluation of Renewable Water Resources and Estimating of Aquifer Parameters in Wadi Hubuna, Southwestern Part of Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Water is one of the most vital natural resources in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and crucial for the survival of all living organisms; it is essential for agriculture, industry, and domestic uses such as drinking and cooking. This study aims to conduct a hydrogeological study to determine the hydraulic parameters of the aquifer, besides evaluating the renewable water resources for Wadi Hubuna in the southern Arabian Shield. Twenty dams were constructed to recharge renewable water resources in the wadi deposits aquifer, with a total capacity of 10.139 MCM. The depths of the examined wells in this study ranged from 9.6 m (well HAB10) to 79 m (well HAB21). The static water level also varies from 2.5 m at well HAB14 to 79.19 m at well HAB17. Alluvium thickness varies from 9.6 m at well HAB10 to 51.7 m at well HAB17. The saturated thickness ranges from 4.4 m in HAB2 to 27.6 m in HAB11. The results of a step and continuous pumping test conducted on ten wells revealed that the well loss varies from 0.03 m at well HAB03 to 5.52 m at well HAB02, the aquifer loss varies from 0.22 m at well HAB03 to 2.84 m at well HAB11, the transmissivity varies from 1.86 x 10-4 m2/s at well HAB01 to 1.25 x 10-2 m2/s at HAB03 well, and finally, the hydraulic conductivity varies from 3.54 x 10-5 at well HAB01 to 1.72 x 10-3 at well HAB03. The western, southern, and northern parts of the wadi are rated low and extremely low in renewable groundwater potentiality because of the limited width of the wadies, the thin surface sediment layer, and the little recharge from rainfall. In order to monitor the water levels in Wadi Hubuna and Wadi Sar, it is required to drill a series of piezometers along their lengths.