Monitoring and modeling infiltration–recharge dynamics of managed aquifer recharge with desalinated seawater

Abstract

Abstract. We study the relation between surface infiltration and groundwater recharge during managed aquifer recharge (MAR) with desalinated seawater in an infiltration pond, at the Menashe site that overlies the northern part of the Israeli Coastal Aquifer. We monitor infiltration dynamics at multiple scales (up to the scale of the entire pond) by measuring the ponding depth, sediment water content and groundwater levels, using pressure sensors, single-ring infiltrometers, soil sensors, and observation wells. During a month (January 2015) of continuous intensive MAR (2.45 × 10 6 m 3 discharged to a 10.7 ha area), groundwater level has risen by 17 m attaining full connection with the pond, while average infiltration rates declined by almost 2 orders of magnitude (from ∼ 11 to ∼ 0.4 m d −1 ). This reduction can be explained solely by the lithology of the unsaturated zone that includes relatively low-permeability sediments. Clogging processes at the pond-surface -abundant in many MAR operations -are negated by the high-quality desalinated seawater (turbidity ∼ 0.2 NTU, total dissolved solids ∼ 120 mg L −1 ) or negligible compared to the low-permeability layers. Recharge during infiltration was estimated reasonably well by simple analytical models, whereas a numerical model was used for estimating groundwater recharge after the end of infiltration. It was found that a calibrated numerical model with a onedimensional representative sediment profile is able to capture MAR dynamics, including temporal reduction of infiltration rates, drainage and groundwater recharge. Measured infiltration rates of an independent MAR event (January 2016) fitted well to those calculated by the calibrated numerical model, showing the model validity. The successful quantification methodologies of the temporal groundwater recharge are useful for MAR practitioners and can serve as an input for groundwater flow models.

Managed aquifer recharge with reverse-osmosis desalinated seawater: modeling the spreading in groundwater using stable water isotopes

“…In Israel, for example, DSW reached 66 % of the domestic and industrial fresh water supply in 2017 (Israel Water Authority, 2018). This growing use of DSW affects downstream water systems such as reservoirs (Ronen-Eliraz et al, 2017;Negev et al, 2017;Stuyfzand et al, 2017;Ganot et al, 2017Ganot et al, , 2018, wastewater treatment plants (Lahav et al, 2010;Negev et al, 2017) and agricultural irrigation (Lahav et al, 2010;Yermiyahu et al, 2007). One direct way by which DSW use affects the water budget is managed aquifer recharge (MAR).…”

Using Desalinated Water for Irrigation: Its Effect on Field Scale Water Flow and Contaminant Transport under Cropped Conditions

“…The latter, in turn, significantly reduces water content, hydraulic conductivity, and vertical velocity, and, consequently, solute mass fluxes along the soil profile. On the other hand, chloride-nitrate interaction has only a relatively small effect on the nitrate mass fluxes at relatively deep soil depths, far below the root zone, particularly when the irrigation water salinity decreases.Water 2019, 11, 687 2 of 17 managed aquifer recharge [11]; and, the most concerning, its use for irrigation. Unease has emerged due to the lack of the major nutrients, namely, calcium, magnesium, and sulfur, in desalinated seawater [12].…”

“…Water 2019, 11, 687 2 of 17 managed aquifer recharge [11]; and, the most concerning, its use for irrigation. Unease has emerged due to the lack of the major nutrients, namely, calcium, magnesium, and sulfur, in desalinated seawater [12].…”

Aquifer Recharge Using a Vadose Zone Infiltration Well

“…MAR was widely implemented in arid and semiarid regions around the World, including the United States (Lacher et al, 2014;Petrides et al, 2015;Scanlon et al, 2016;Schmidt et al, 2012), Australia (Bekele et al, 2014;Dillon et al, 2010;Ward & Dillon, 2012), Europe, and elsewhere (Gowrisankar et al, 2017;Sprenger et al, 2017). The objectives of MAR include, but not limited to, augmenting groundwater resources in arid and semiarid regions (Asano, 1985;Beganskas & Fisher, 2017;Bouwer, 1999), reducing seawater intrusion or land subsidence due to excessive pumping of groundwater (Garcia-Menendez et al, 2018;Shammas, 2008;Shi et al, 2016), improving the quality of treated waste water or desalinated seawater through soil-aquifer treatment or geo-purification (Bouwer, 1991;Elkayam, Sopliniak, et al, 2015;Elkayam, Michail, et al, 2015;Ganot et al, 2017;Ganot et al, 2018;Sharma & Kennedy, 2017;Sopilniak et al, 2018;Tsangaratos et al, 2017), and using aquifers as water conveyance systems (Bouwer, 2002;Kawo et al, 2018). There are several different ways to implement MAR in practices, including direction of water to land surface through canals, irrigation furrows or sprinkler systems, and injection of water into the subsurface through wells.…”