A Comparison of Estimated Groundwater Consumption Using Existing Formulae with Actual Pumped Volumes in the Haean Basin, Korea

Abstract

Efficient groundwater management requires accurate information about the water volume used. The pumped volume of groundwater can be indirectly estimated using empirical formulae based on electric power consumption. The purpose of this study is to test the accuracy of this indirect method. The Haean basin in Gangwon is located in a rural area, where majority of the groundwater extracted is used for irrigation. The pumped volume of groundwater indirectly estimated from electricity usage using these empirical formulae was compared with the actual pumped volume determined by conducting experiments on April 29 and May 19, 2017. The field survey collected data on electricity usage, pumped volume, and groundwater levels. Based on this measured data, correlations were calculated between electricity usage and pumping volume, as well as groundwater level and pumping rate. The results show that electricity usage and pumped volume measured for both wells (YHE1 and YHE2) are highly correlated (r=0.99, p<0.001). However, for YHE1, notably, the correlation between the groundwater level and pumping rate was not significant, and only some correlations were identified for these variables for the YHE2 test well. The average error with respect to the estimation of the actual pumped volume from the existing formula (1) and formulae (2) and (3) are +399% and -88%, respectively. To reduce these errors, these formulae need to consider other factors affecting the pumped volume.