Role of groundwater protection planning in groundwater governance: A case study from North India

In the present case study, impact of urbanization and industrial development on the shallow groundwater regime of Saharanpur town of Uttar Pradesh in India is examined with the aim of planning groundwater protection for better governance. The hazardous physicochemical and bacteriological parameters and heavy metals detected in the shallow aquifer include harmful pathogens like fecal coliforms, heavy metals like cadmium, chromium, nitrates and sulphates. An assessment of ground water vulnerability using the well known DRASTIC method has confirmed that the shallow groundwater in some central and southern localities of Saharanpur town fall in the medium risk zones. Further, using field data of 32 electrical resistivity soundings, the protective capacity of the unconfined aquifer is assessed in terms of a ‘total longitudinal conductance’ of the semi-pervious to impervious sediments overlying the unconfined aquifer. However, some areas aligned along a northwest-southeast and in the western parts of the town seem to have relatively higher protective capacity against infiltrating waste pollutants. A ground water protection planning map prepared by combining the DRASTIC map and the ‘potentially hazardous pollutants’ map has brought out the need to install eleven new groundwater quality monitoring wells in the town at locations near the line sources and point sources of pollution. This approach can be readily employed by the decision makers in framing sound guidelines for groundwater protection and governance.     

GIS-based geo-environmental evaluation for urban land-use planning: a case study

A geo-environmental evaluation for urban land-use planning often requires a large amount of spatial information. Geographic information systems (GIS) are capable of managing large amounts of spatially related information, providing the ability to integrate multiple layers of information and to derive additional information. A GIS-aid to the geo-environmental evaluation for urban land-use planning is illustrated for the urban area of Lanzhou City and its vicinity in Northwest China. This evaluation incorporates topography, surficial and bedrock geology, groundwater conditions, and historic geologic hazards. Urban land-use is categorized according to the types of land-use and projects planned, such as high-rise building, multi-storey building, low-rise building, waste disposal, and natural conservation. Multi-criteria analysis is performed to evaluate development suitability of the geo-environment for each category, according to appropriately measured and weighted factors. A suitability map for each category is developed using an algorithm that combines factors in weighted linear combinations. It is demonstrated that the GIS methodology has high functionality for geo-environmental assessment.     

Closing the groundwater protection implementation gap

Complacency about drinking water security was the order of the day in the Province of Ontario, Canada, until the water supply of the community of Walkerton was contaminated in May 2000. Seven people died and 2300 became seriously ill when runoff from a nearby livestock farm contaminated an improperly constructed municipal well. The Walkerton tragedy, and similar incidents that have occurred in Ontario and elsewhere in North America and Europe during past decades, reflect serious implementation gaps in groundwater protection. In Ontario, many of these implementation gaps relate to shortfalls in local and provincial management capacity. Some local organizations are well served with skilled staff, leaders committed to groundwater protection, effective policies and plans, and sound databases. Unfortunately, many are not, particularly smaller communities in rural areas. Existing implementation gaps were exacerbated in the mid-1990s when the provincial government increased the responsibilities of local agencies while at the same time cutting funding and staffing levels in its own Ministry of the Environment. Recent local and provincial initiatives are beginning to close some implementation gaps. However, key challenges remain. This paper explores factors that shape local capacity for groundwater protection, and highlights ways in which capacity-related implementation gaps may be addressed. The focus is experiences in Ontario, Canada. However, lessons learned are broadly transferable. Chief among these are the importance of financial and technical support for delineation of source water protection zones; legal requirements for source water protection; senior government commitment and leadership; and enhanced local awareness of, and participation in, groundwater management.     

Integrating long-term seismic risk changes into improving emergency response and land-use planning: a case study for the Hsinchu City, Taiwan

An increasing number of rapidly growing urban areas in Asia are becoming more vulnerable to seismic hazards in their development process. However, local authorities rarely integrate seismic risk into the procedure of emergency and land-use planning. This article explores the question of whether seismic risks for urban areas are increasing or diminishing over time, while trends such as population growth and land development in hazard-prone areas increase the potential for loss in disasters. The net effects of such urbanization factors are examined through the use of simulation models that estimate building inventory and seismic loss changes. Seismic losses are modeled for a comparative analysis under the same hypothetical earthquake events hitting at different points in a city area’s long-term development. A case study of seismic risk assessments is illustrated by the Hsinchu City, Taiwan. Results of a prospective analysis indicate that, for the same seismic events, overall risk is expected to increase due to a forecast 2.9 % growth in building inventory. This increment in loss is largely attributed to a large amount of initial buildings predicted to be developed into commercial and industrial uses. However, the spatial pattern of risk would change slightly; particularly, the southeastern, eastern, and some older core areas would be the most vulnerable and risky both at current and future time periods. The approach here enables city planners to incorporate seismic risk analysis into predisaster emergency and land-use planning to encourage risk-reduction strategies.     

Hydrochemistry of urban groundwater in Seoul, South Korea: effects of land-use and pollutant recharge

The ionic and isotopic compositions (δD, δ¹⁸O, and ³H) of urban groundwaters have been monitored in Seoul to examine the water quality in relation to land-use. High tritium contents (6.1–12.0 TU) and the absence of spatial/seasonal change of O–H isotope data indicate that groundwaters are well mixed within aquifers with recently recharged waters of high contamination susceptibility. Statistical analyses show a spatial variation of major ions in relation to land-use type. The major ion concentrations tend to increase with anthropogenic contamination, due to the local pollutants recharge. The TDS concentration appears to be a useful contamination indicator, as it generally increases by the order of forested green zone (average 151 mg/l), agricultural area, residential area, traffic area, and industrialized area (average 585 mg/l). With the increased anthropogenic contamination, the groundwater chemistry changes from a Ca–HCO₃ type toward a Ca–Cl(+NO₃) type. The source and behavior of major ions are discussed and the hydrochemical backgrounds are proposed as the basis of a groundwater management plan.     

Hydrogeochemical zonation for groundwater management in the area with diversified geological and land-use setup

Despite its limited aerial extent, the National Capital Territory (NCT) Delhi, India, has diversified geological and topographical setup. A geochemical assessment of prevailing conditions of aquifer underlying the NCT was attempted and further classified into different hydrogeochemical zones on the basis of statistical and analyses and its correlation with land use, geological and climatic setting. Mineral phase study and isotopic analyses were used for the verification of performed clustering. Saturation indices (SI) calculated using the geochemical modelling code PHREEQC were used to distinguish the characteristics of four zones, as saturation states of the water does not change abruptly. Four different hydrogeochemical zones were statistically identified in the area: (1) intermediate (land-use-change-impacted) recharge zone, (2) discharge (agriculture-impacted) zone, (3) recharge (ridge) zone, and (4) recharge floodplain (untreated-discharge-impacted) zone. The distinctiveness of hydro-geochemical zones was further verified using stable isotopic (²H and ¹⁸O) signature of these waters. GIS-based flow regime in association with long-term geochemical evidences implied that these zones are being affected by different problems; thus, it necessitates separate environmental measures for their management and conservation. The study suggested that in a diversified urban setup where the complex interactions between anthropogenic activities and normal geochemical processes are functioning, hydrogeochmical zoning based on the integration of various techniques could be the first step towards sketching out the groundwater management plan.     

Role of public awareness in groundwater protection

Scarcity of water, particularly in towns situated along the Mediterranean coast where the main aquifers are in karstic carbonate rocks, necessitates more thoroughness in exploiting and protecting the groundwater resources. Geomorphological and hydrogeological studies have revealed large quantities of the input and throughput features, such as sinkholes, dolines, uvalas and poljes in the recharge areas of many karst aquifers in Turkey. Naturally, recharge areas are generally located at higher elevations and regions remote from the urbanized areas. These features lead the local authorities and persons to utilize the karst features for their own purposes. Dolines and ponors are commonly utilized as injection points for wastewater, while uvalas and poljes are used as solid waste disposal sites. When doing this, the people are unconscious of the connection of such sites with the wells or springs that provide water for their supply. A number of occurrences in Turkey have demonstrated that, no matter how perfect the efficiency of the technical work, protection of the water resources is primarily related to the consciousness of the local authorities. They must either take proper measures to protect the resources or to educate the public in this issue. To achieve this aim, it is very important to involve the public administrative sector and the technical sector in preparing guidelines for integrated environmental evaluation of karst water resources. The main phase of a study should include locating appropriate sites for disposal of wastewater and various liquid and solid wastes that will satisfy requirements by the administrators as well as providing a water supply of good quality for the public. This paper discusses the issue of how to overcome the public awareness problem. Some examples demonstrate how the technical achievements failed to be effective and applicable due to the lack of contribution on the part of the local authorities and the public. Some suggestions are made concerning a revision of the currently insufficient regulations.     

Elements of groundwater protection in a karst environment

The large spread of karst in Yugoslavia (over one third of the territory) and the importance of its water resources due to the growing pollution of the environment lead to complicated research activities in various scientific fields. A multidisciplinary approach to this research should have the following basic directions: defining sources of pollution; classification of pollutants; defining hydrological, geological, and hydrogeological characteristics of the area studied; study of interaction among pollutants, groundwater, and rocks; and, finally, defining of specific protection measures. The prerequisite for any decision making should already exist in local and regional urban plans. Some basic principles of the listed directions of research are illustrated by examples from practice.     

地下水资源保护的立法研究

我国许多地方因过度开采利用地下水、地下采矿疏干排泄地下水而引发了多种地质灾害,同时,地下水污染趋势愈演愈烈,导致了大范围地下水环境恶化,已经到了威胁人类生存和危害社会公共安全的程度,亟待加强地下水资源保护,改善生态环境已经刻不容缓.分析了造成地下水环境恶化的主要原因,地下水资源保护管理中存在的操作难问题,提出了地下水资源保护立法的核心内容和基本思路,进一步完善地下水资源保护的立法、执法,科学管理和保护地下水资源,促进地下水资源利用的良性循环.     

Decision-support systems for groundwater protection: innovative tools for resource management

Governmental authorities are forced by law to make decisions within the framework of European, national and regional directives in the fields of spatial planning, groundwater and environmental protection. These tasks can be supported by a decision-support system, which integrates data from various sources and helps to make decision processes more effective and transparent. Basic work for such a decision support system has been done in a transnational and interdisciplinary project (Interreg II C: KATER), including metadata definition, metadata system, cartographic tools and GIS tools. The direct integration of these tools and information in the decision process will be implemented in the next few years (project KATER II).     

Geological mapping of rapid mass movement deposits as an aid to land-use planning

Rapid mass movements are common features of hilly or mountainous terrains, and depending on the type of movements or processes involved these give rise to characteristic deposits. Identification of these deposits in mapping programmes gives a clue as to their mode of origin (rockslide/rockfall, snow avalanche, debris flow, fluidal sediment flow) and this can be used to predict rapid mass movements in the future.

A case story from western Norway is described and the value of mapping such deposits for land-use planning and hazard estimation stressed.     

Geostatistics as a groundwater exploration planning tool: case of a brackish-saline aquifer

This paper discusses a geostatistical approach to model a groundwater aquifer in 3-D. The study aims at utilizing geostatistics as a tool for characterizing zones of better-water quality in a brackish-saline aquifer. In particular, the geostatistical model was constructed to characterize the aquifer’s salinity, represented by total dissolved solids (TDS), using logs of porosity and resistivity. Quality-checked estimated TDS vertical profiles were employed to construct and model horizontal and vertical semivariograms. Parameters of semivariogram models were used to develop both the kriging plan and the generated model. Results of this modeling process are shown in the form of horizontal salinity distribution maps. The aquifer was sliced into 20 layers, each 20 m thick, to represent its overall thickness. Salinity layers maps reflect vertical stratification of TDS concentrations in the aquifer and show that water quality deteriorates with depth and toward the northern part of the aquifer. Relatively better-quality water (TDS ≤10,000 mg/l) can be found at depths between 100 and 250 m below the aquifer’s top in both eastern and southeastern parts. Water in the same interval to the western and southwestern parts reflects the presence of higher TDS concentration. From a planning point of view, it is more feasible to target the eastern part of the aquifer for pumping and desalination purposes. In addition, the generated model could be utilized as an initial condition for flow simulation.     

Ecological function zoning and protection of groundwater in Asia

The natural groundwater recharge in Asia is estimated to be 4 677.74×10⁹ m³/a. However, it features extremely uneven spatial-temporal distribution. Groundwater is distributed in various natural and geological environments, and it is liable to be affected by numerous factors and possesses different properties. Moreover, groundwater faces complex ecological problems. This paper gains a complete understanding of groundwater in Asia in terms of the structure of aquifer systems, the processes of groundwater cycle, and the spatial variation laws of surface ecosystems. Based on this, it proposes the ecological function zoning scheme of groundwater in Asia, aiming to provide guidance for the utilization of regional water resources and the planning for economic and social development, coordinate the relationship between social and economic development and water resource protection, and improve the ecological functions of groundwater. Furthermore, this paper analyzes the problems with regional groundwater management in Asia and puts forward countermeasures and suggestions, thus providing a theoretical basis for the sustainable development and utilization of regional groundwater and environmental protection.     

GIS-based impact assessment of land-use changes on groundwater quality: study from a rapidly urbanizing region of South India

This study attempts to assess the influence of changing land-use patterns on the groundwater quality of the hard rock aquifer system in the Maheshwaram watershed, near Hyderabad, India. The study area is a rapidly urbanizing region with land development progressing at a fast pace. To study the impact of this rapid urbanization and overall land-use transition, a groundwater quality index (GQI) was prepared within a geographical information system (GIS). The GQI integrates the different water quality parameters to give a final index value that can be used for spatio-temporal comparisons. The land-use transitions were closely monitored from 2003 to 2008 using multispectral satellite images. The land-use pattern has changed drastically with an increase in the built-up area at the expense of other land uses. The analysis reveals a rapid deterioration of groundwater quality related mainly to the increase in built-up land with unsewered sanitation and poultry farms. Seasonal variability of the groundwater quality was also assessed. Mean GQI decreased from 84.16 to 83.26 over a period of 5 years from 2003 to 2008, while seasonal variability of water quality increased. GQI and Seasonal Variability of water quality were integrated in GIS to yield a groundwater sustainability map, in terms of water quality. Zones of sustainable and unsustainable groundwater use were demarcated for better decision making related to municipal land allotment in this rapidly urbanizing region.     

AQUAGRID: an extensible platform for collaborative problem solving in groundwater protection

AQUAGRID is the subsurface hydrology computational service of the Sardinian GRIDA3 infrastructure, designed to deliver complex environmental applications via a user-friendly Web portal. The service aims to provide to water professionals integrated modeling tools to solve water resources management problems and aid decision making for contaminated soil and groundwater. In this paper, the AQUAGRID application concept and enabling technologies are illustrated. At the heart of the service are the computational models to simulate complex and large groundwater flow and contaminant transport problems and geochemical speciation. AQUAGRID is built on top of compute-Grid technologies by means of the EnginFrame Grid framework. Distributed data management is provided by the Storage Resource Broker data-Grid middleware. The resulting environment allows end-users to perform groundwater simulations and to visualize and interact with their results, using graphs, 3D images and annotated maps. The problem solving capability of the platform is demonstrated using the results of two case studies deployed.     

Exploitation of groundwater resources and protection of wetland in the Yuqia Basin

In Yuqia Basin, the climate is arid and the ecologic environment is fragile, and shortage of water resources has seriously restricted the sustainable development of local economy. In order to meet the needs of industrial and domestic water in the Yuqia Basin, numerical simulation was used to evaluate the groundwater resources and potential for exploitation. The results showed that the mathematical model and calculation parameters used were mainly in accordance with practical situation. The calculated value of the underground water level is consistent with measured value during the period of identification and validation. The total recharge of groundwater resources was 22.02×10~4 m~3/d, and the total drainage was 21.95×10~4 m~3/d at present. The Yuqia River leakage is the main supply source of groundwater. There is no significant effect on area of wetland when water source place exploited by 2.5×10~4 m~3/d at alluvial-diluvial fan of Yuqia River. After long-term exploitation, the spring flow reduces from 1.42×10~4 m~3/d to 1.01×10~4 m~3/d and wetland area reduces by 32.7% of original area. The calculation of water balance shows that it is safe to the Yuqia Basin, Da Qiadam Lake, the Mahai Basin at downstream of Yuqia River and wetland under the condition of water source place exploited by 2.5×10~4 m~3/d.     

Impact of land-use and land-cover change on groundwater quality in the Lower Shiwalik hills: a remote sensing and GIS based approach

Human activities have exerted small to large scale changes on the hydrological cycle. The current scenario regarding groundwater resources suggests that globally there is a water crisis in terms of quantity (availability) and quality. Therefore there is a great need for the assessment and monitoring of quality and quantity of groundwater resources at local level. This paper presents a case study of the lower Shiwalik hills, in Rupnagar, Punjab, India, to trace land-use and land-cover changes during the past 17 years, with an emphasis on groundwater quality and quantity. This study was performed in alluvial and hilly terrain. The results show that the quantity of groundwater increased with the help of natural and artificial recharge due to change in land-use and land-cover pattern (increased area of fallow land). The quality of groundwater deteriorated due to input of fertilizers for enhancing the short-term soil fertility. Using a Remote Sensing and GIS based approach, we show the final results in map form. In particular we highlight a potential groundwater exploration site, which could be useful for district level planning. Our research shows that the change in land-use and land-cover affects the quantity and quality of groundwater.     

基于矿地融合视角的空间规划管制研究

将地质资源环境调查与空间规划相结合,是规范土地开发行为、规避地质环境风险、有效利用地质资源的重要手段之一。统筹考虑地质调查成果内容和空间管制分区评价需求,应用Meta分析法计算指标权重,提出了一套以空间规划管制分区为切入点的矿地融合空间规划管制方案,并选取苏州中心城区进行了实证分析。结果表明,苏州市区建设用地适宜性较好,较适宜建设区域面积较大,主要分区在工业园区、相城区和吴江区,基本能满足近期规划的需求,从城镇扩展、生态用地保护、中心城区开发边界3个方面提出空间规划管制发展方向,证明未来城市建设应向南北两个方向发展。     

Integrated analysis of policy options for protection of groundwater quality

This paper is directed at providing an integrated framework that a regional authority should use when assessing the potential impacts of any policy initiative directed at improving groundwater quality. In particular, a policy model is developed relying on three decision components (a farm-level production decisions model, a household decisions model and a regional policy decision model) where the objective is one of identifying the trade-offs that a regional authority will be confronted with as it strives to balance the preferences of farmers and households while endeavoring to maximize net economic welfare. The basic rule developed indicates that the regional authority must choose a policy whereby any increase (decrease) in regional income is just equal to the decrease (increase) in net benefits to households.The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the policies of the U.S. Department of Agriculture or the views of other U.S. Department of Agriculture staff members.