Towards a Pan-European Integrated Groundwater and Surface Water Model: Development and Applications

Abstract

During the last years, we have developed a model, which is able to simulate hydrological processes at a Pan-European scale. The model has multiple possible uses, including flood forecasting, identification of groundwater recharge / discharge zones and large-scale water resources management. The integrated model is based on the LISFLOOD model, which simulates hydrological processes with a focus on snow and soil hydrology and streamflow routing. The area of interest is the full European continent, divided in 5 × 5 km cells. A conceptual 2D MODFLOW model was linked to improve groundwater simulation. With this coupling, it is now possible to simulate the water exchanges between adjacent cells, and between groundwater and river. Available meteorological data from 1-1-1990 to 31-10-2014 were used as input for the coupled model, together with values of aquifer properties derived from literature. We used observed data of recharge, discharge and hydraulic heads from the Danube river basin to check if the model results correspond to reality. The results show a reasonably high degree of agreement between observed and simulated data, taking into account the limitations of large scale modelling. This model is the first step to improve integrated groundwater and surface water modelling which includes the collection of data and the production of Pan-European groundwater parameter maps.

Large‐Scale Assessment of Delayed Groundwater Responses to Drought

“…Most studies on continental-to-global-scale groundwater models use borehole observations for evaluation (e.g., de Graaf et al, 2017;Fan et al, 2013;Trichakis et al, 2017 Water Resources Research averages ignoring subgrid variability, thus requiring regionally representative groundwater observations which are rarely available. Moreover, groundwater boreholes are most often located in larger porous aquifers impeding the evaluation of groundwater models in areas with less productive aquifers.…”

“…Most studies on continental-to-global-scale groundwater models use borehole observations for evaluation (e.g., de Graaf et al, 2017;Fan et al, 2013;Trichakis et al, 2017). However, groundwater dynamics from borehole observations in the upper (shallow) aquifer can be very site-specific and vary over short distances (e.g., Heudorfer et al, 2019;Kumar et al, 2016).…”

“…This progress was strongly facilitated by the development of global data sets on hydrogeological properties that become more and more available (e.g., Gleeson et al, ; Hartmann & Moosdorf, ; Huscroft et al, ). Additionally, several groundwater models in the last years have been set up on a national‐to‐continental scale (e.g., for the continental United States: Maxwell et al, ; New Zealand: Westerhoff et al, ; Europe: Trichakis et al, ). Some national models may run at higher resolutions or use more accurate parameterizations with the aim that they can provide more locally relevant data.…”

Kamchia watershed groundwater recharge assessment by the CLM3 model

“…In the last two decades an often practice for GW recharge assessment became the employment of models accounting for the meteorological loading [2][3][4][5][6]. Here considered is an improved hydrological model, which includes adequate simulation not only of the surface runoff formation and evaporation but also of the processes of water infiltration and transport through the soil unsaturated zone.…”

Experimental and Numerical Investigations of Influence on Overland Flow and Water Infiltration by Fracture Networks in Soil

“…It coupled three-dimensional saturated-unsaturated groundwater flow and diffusion wave equation of surface flow, by taking into account a series of models of rivers, channels, and hydraulic structures. Trichakis et al [19] developed an integrated model based on the LISFLOOD model, which was used to simulate the hydrological process at a pan-European scale.…”