Surface Water Interaction Modelling Using Visual MODFLOW and GIS

PHYLARES__________________________________________________________________________________________IIAbstractUnderstanding interconnections among the components of the hydrologic cycle is fundamental todevelopment of effective water resources management and policy. The need to assess the effectsof variability in geology, climate, biota and human activities on water availability and flowrequires the development of models that couple two or more components of the hydrologic cycle.Groundwater and surface water resources are by no means disjoint, as knowing where surfacewater recharges groundwater and where groundwater flows supply surface water is an importantaspect of the hydrologic cycle. As global concerns over water resources and the environmentincrease, the importance of considering groundwater and surface water as a single resource hasbecome increasingly evident.Ground water and surface water are hydraulically interconnected, but the interactions aredifficult to observe and measure. In many situations, surface-water bodies gain water and solutesfrom ground-water systems and in others the surface-water body is a source of ground-waterrecharge and causes changes in ground-water quality. As a result, withdrawal of water fromstreams can deplete ground water or conversely, pumpage of ground water can deplete water instreams, lakes, or wetlands. Pollution of surface water can cause degradation of ground-waterquality and conversely pollution of ground water can degrade surface water. Thus, effective landand water management requires a clear understanding of the linkages between ground water andsurface water as it applies to any given hydrologic setting.At some reaches water moves from the land surface to the subsurface and in other areas it movesfrom the subsurface to the land. Lakes and wetlands can receive groundwater inflow throughouttheir entire bed, have outflow throughout their entire bed, or have both inflow and outflow atdifferent localities. In this thesis, surface water and groundwater interaction model wasdeveloped for a study area located in the Nete Catchment, Belgium.______________________________________________________________________________________Groundwater – Surface water interaction modeling using visual MODFLOW and GIS