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Feedback of land subsidence on the movement and conjunctive use of water resources

January 1, 2014

The dependency of surface- or groundwater flows and aquifer hydraulic properties on dewatering-induced layer deformation is not available in the USGS's groundwater model MODFLOW. A new integrated hydrologic model, MODFLOW-OWHM, formulates this dependency by coupling mesh deformation with aquifer transmissivity and storage and by linking land subsidence/uplift with deformation-dependent flows that also depend on aquifer head and other flow terms. In a test example, flows most affected were stream seepage and evapotranspiration from groundwater (ETgw). Deformation feedback also had an indirect effect on conjunctive surface- and groundwater use components: Changed stream seepage and streamflows influenced surface-water deliveries and returnflows. Changed ETgw affected irrigation demand, which jointly with altered surface-water supplies resulted in changed supplemental groundwater requirements and pumping and changed return runoff. This modeling feature will improve the impact assessment of dewatering-induced land subsidence/uplift (following irrigation pumping or coal-seam gas extraction) on surface receptors, inter-basin transfers, and surface-infrastructure integrity.

Publication Year 2014
Title Feedback of land subsidence on the movement and conjunctive use of water resources
DOI 10.1016/j.envsoft.2014.08.006
Authors Wolfgang Schmid, Randall T. Hanson, Stanley A. Leake, Joseph D. Hughes, Richard G. Niswonger
Publication Type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Series Title Environmental Modelling and Software
Index ID 70115030
Record Source USGS Publications Warehouse
USGS Organization California Water Science Center