Hydraulic-Hydrology Analysis of the Turbulent Seepage Flow within Karst Aquifer of the Golubinka Spring Catchment

Abstract

This paper shows the results of the hydraulic-hydrologic calculations of karst spring discharges and the groundwater level in the aquifer of spring catchment. The calculations were performed for the Golubinka spring in Zadar area for the 4-year period. The chosen approach was a model using relatively scarce data set, including limnigraphic data on the difference between the sea water level and the freshwater level on the spring itself and the precipitation data from the meteorological station Zadar. The determination of discharge hydrographs, based on inherent assumptions and available data, yields the proportionality coefficients between the discharge and the limnigraphic data on the Golubinka spring itself. Further, based on the discharge hydrograph, groundwater level oscillation was determined. The resulting spring discharge hydrograph and groundwater levels, along with the assumption of Golubinka spring as the only spring on the catchment, were used in creating turbulent seepage model of the fractured system within the aquifer, which evidently extends along the axis of the Golubinka spring catchment. The model yielded suitable turbulent seepage coefficients of the fracture system. By using the numerical model KarstMod it was estimated that, on average, concentrated fracture flow drains around 85% of infiltrated volumes and the remaining 15% accounts for diffuse matrix flow. Finally, the Modflow model was used in order to get insight into the flow field and the distribution of equipotentials in the aquifer of the Golubinka catchment.

Improved understanding of dynamic water and mass budgets of high‐alpine karst systems obtained from studying a well‐defined catchment area

“…Other models of karst aquifers (e.g., Baudement et al, 2017; Chen & Goldscheider, 2014; Loncar et al, 2018) also show that the resulting hydrographs are composed of rapid‐flow and slow‐flow components (baseflow, M → C) as described by, for example, Ford and Williams (2007). Our modelling results clearly show the importance of the matrix storage, which is also an important factor for future management strategies, considering that climate change scenarios project more heavy rainfall events, but also longer dry periods.…”

“…Other models of karst aquifers (e.g., Baudement et al, 2017;Chen & Goldscheider, 2014;Loncar et al, 2018) also show that the resulting hydrographs are composed of rapid-flow and slow-flow components (baseflow, M ! C) as described by, for example, Ford and Williams (2007).…”

Methodology for Determining the Die-Off Coefficient of Enterococci in the Conditions of Transport through the Karst Aquifer—Case Study: Bokanjac–Poličnik Catchment

“…Slow, diffuse flow took place in the top layer while more significant seepage took place in the bottom layer, where fractures and karst channels were simulated by setting higher values of hydraulic conductivity. Model parametrization in a sense of hydraulic conductivity K x , K y , K z , effective porosity n e f f and total porosity n tot (Table 1) was adopted based on the calibration procedure in [49]. Table 1.…”

A Conceptual Model of Groundwater Dynamics in the Catchment Area of the Zagorska Mrežnica Spring, the Karst Massif of Kapela Mountain

“…For the purpose of this project modelling of the runoff from the Drežničko Polje toward the Zagorska Mrežnica spring was carried out using the Hydrologic Engineering Center-Reservoir System Simulation (HEC-ResSim) model. The emergence of extreme flows, the analysis of hydrological trends, definition of catchment area and the impact of an inter-basin water transfer on the river basins of Dinaric karst were the focus of studies by Bonacci and Andrić [7,8], Pavlić et al [9], Pavlić and Jakobović [10], Pavlić and Parlov [11], Lončar et al [12]. Precisely because of the expected extreme flows, this procedure is justified in order to reduce the flooding of the Ogulinsko Polje.…”