Karst groundwater quantity assessment and sustainability: the approach appropriate for river basin management plans

Abstract

As a result of the fact that karstified rocks can accumulate large amounts of high-quality groundwater, karst aquifer is considered, throughout the world, one of the most important types of aquifers. Due to their high permeability, but also vulnerability to pollution, these precious groundwater resources need to be properly evaluated and protected. Taking into account heterogeneity and complexity of the karst environment, it is difficult to propose a uniform algorithm for managing karst groundwater, which causes the necessity to most often apply a case-by-case approach. The rules and standards of the EU Water Framework Directive require the development of Management Plans for all, and entire, river basins. Such plans include the estimation of pressures on water quality and quantity and have already been prepared for most basins of the European Union countries. This paper discusses the applied methodology and some of the results that have been obtained through the analyses of quantitative pressure on delineated groundwater bodies within the Danube and Sava River basins in Bosnia & Herzegovina and Serbia. The analyses confirmed the immense potential of karst aquifers in both countries as regards groundwater quantity.