Abstract
Due to limited rainfall and precipitations, different developing countries depend on groundwater (G.W.) resources to challenge water scarcity. This practice of continuous and excessive G.W. pumping has led to severe water shortages and deteriorated water quality in different countries. Recharging of treated wastewater (TWW) into G.W. provides a critical solution for solving water scarcity, extending the well’s service life, and maintaining the G.W. supply. However, effective injection practice requires accurate tools and methods to determine the best location for groundwater recharge (GWRC). This work offers a new tool based on GIS–Multi-Criteria Analysis to identify the potential site and locations for GWRC with TWW. The developed methodology was applied to one of the most used well-field areas in Jordan (Dhuleil-Halabat). The G.W. flow for the B-B2/A7 formation system in the area of study was simulated using Processing Modflow (version 8.0). The analysis combined six thematic maps produced following the environmental, technical, and economic criteria to draw conclusions and recommendations. Both steady and transient conditions were used to predict the future changes that might occur under different stresses and after continuous GWR. The study evaluated three possible scenarios of artificial GWRC to evaluate the process efficiency and determine the effect on the water table level. The results revealed that only 0.05% (0.14 Km2) of the total surface area of 450 Km2 is suitable for GWRC. A GWRC with TWW at a rate of 3.65 Mm3/year (MCMY) would provide a good G.W. table recovery to 39.68 m in the year 2025, maintain a steady-state water table ≥ of 50.77 m for up to six years, and secure water supply for future generations. The proposed methodology can be used as a useful tool that can be applied to regulate the GWRC practice worldwide.
Highlights
Groundwater (G.W.) has been used as the main water supply in arid and semi-arid areas of highly populated countries
The present study aims to investigate the use of GIS-based multi-criteria analysis to identify potential site locations for groundwater recharge (GWRC) with treated wastewater (TWW)
The model developed in this study can be used as a useful tool to control and manage the volumes and location of the TWW that could be used in the artificial GWRC of this area for economic and resource preservation purposes
Summary
Groundwater (G.W.) has been used as the main water supply in arid and semi-arid areas of highly populated countries. High-quality TWW is a steadily and widely available natural resource that can be used in GWRC as a vital alternative to sustain G.W. potential, resource conservation, and management of large volumes of wastewater During this process, the TWW is infiltrated through the unsaturated zone, where it undergoes a natural purification process and maintains the supply of high-quality G.W. Previous works have highlighted different challenges for GWRC practice, including the effect of recharged volume of TWW as well as water quality parameters on the quality of the produced G.W. Due to over-pumping, the aquifer equilibrium was disrupted, and the volume of G.W. decreased, which led to a decrease in the quality of the G.W. The model developed in this study can be used as a useful tool to control and manage the volumes and location of the TWW that could be used in the artificial GWRC of this area for economic and resource preservation purposes. The land use of the study area is composed of 78.07% bare soil, including urbanized areas, 9.33% field crops, tree crops, and vegetables, and 5.17% of the study area is pastureland (Figure 2d)
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