GroundwaterPub Date : 2024-10-27DOI: 10.1111/gwat.13451
Kenneth R. Bradbury
{"title":"Remembering the Big Picture","authors":"Kenneth R. Bradbury","doi":"10.1111/gwat.13451","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gwat.13451","url":null,"abstract":"<p>As a practicing hydrogeologist, I have assisted many people and communities who have problem wells or water shortages. But when I recently experienced my own water shortage, I realized how much we in developed countries depend on and take for granted that the water will just be there, and will be fit to drink, when we turn on the tap. In late May of this year, thunderstorms and a few tornados rumbled across the midwestern United States, including our home in southern Wisconsin. My wife and I live in a rural area and are accustomed to thunderstorms in the spring. We are also used to occasional electric power outages, which happen three or four times a year and usually last from 15 min to an hour. So, we weren't especially surprised or worried when our lights went out during the storm. Suddenly, our home was silent except for the rain on the windows—no TV, no radio, no internet, no refrigerator, no lights—and no water, because we depend on our domestic well and pump. Our system usually holds enough water and pressure for a couple of toilet flushes and face washes, but that's it. When the blackout lasts 1 to 2 h, no problem. But when it lasts for 24, then 48, then 60 h, as it did this time, we realize how much we take our well, and our water, for granted. We had no water stockpiled. Fortunately, I was able to drive to a convenience store and purchase a few gallons of “pure spring water” to get us through the requisite drinking, face washing, and tooth brushing, but flushing the toilets was a more complicated matter. Our older home has standard toilets, which require about 7 gal per flush (unlike the newer low-flow toilets). I found myself lugging buckets of water up a hill from a nearby stream (and 7 gal weighs around 58 pounds) for flushing toilets and watering our neighbors' horses.</p><p>Obviously, my power outage was just a minor inconvenience compared to the problems of billions of people faced with real disasters and perpetual water shortages. Based on research by Mekonnen and Hoekstra (<span>2016</span>), UNICEF reports that “…four billion people—almost two thirds of the world's population—experience severe water scarcity for at least one month each year, and over two billion people live in countries where water supply is inadequate (https://www.unicef.org/wash/water-scarcity).” This experience made me contemplate the scope of groundwater science and wonder if we are emphasizing the right things in our work and ignoring the big picture while we focus on the small stuff.</p><p><i>Groundwater's</i> publisher, Wiley, lists the top four issue categories addressed by papers in the journal during the past year as, (1) groundwater flow models; (2) groundwater/aquifer recharge; (3) flow/solute transport simulation; and (4) groundwater solute composition and concentrations. These are all important and interesting topics but may not directly address one of the fundamental issues of our time—global water supply and sustainability, the topic of a rece","PeriodicalId":12866,"journal":{"name":"Groundwater","volume":"62 6","pages":"820-821"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/gwat.13451","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142515291","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
GroundwaterPub Date : 2024-09-18DOI: 10.1111/gwat.13441
John P McDonald
{"title":"Pressure Transducer Measurement Variability in Deep Wells Screened Across the Water Table.","authors":"John P McDonald","doi":"10.1111/gwat.13441","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/gwat.13441","url":null,"abstract":"Automated water level measurements collected using vented pressure transducers in deep wells screened across the water table may exhibit a greater response to barometric pressure changes than the true water level. The cause was hypothesized to be disequilibrium in barometric pressure between the wellbores and land surface due to air exchange with the deep vadose zone. In this study, vented and nonvented pressure transducers were installed and operated simultaneously in two deep wells screened across the water table. A vent tube open to the atmosphere at land surface allowed for barometric compensation of the vented transducers. Two nonvented transducers were installed in each well, one submerged in the water and one above the water surface. The difference in readings allowed for barometric compensation. Manual measurements were also collected. It was confirmed that measurements from the vented transducers exhibited greater variability in response to barometric pressure changes than the nonvented transducers and manual measurements. Comparison of the downhole barometric pressure measurements to values from a nearby meteorology station showed the response in the wells to changes in barometric pressure was time-lagged and attenuated. Thus, the reference pressure from land surface supplied to the vented transducers was not representative of the air pressure within the wells. This caused fluctuations of the transducer readings in response to barometric pressure changes to be greater than the true water level change. This issue can be resolved by the use of nonvented pressure transducers.","PeriodicalId":12866,"journal":{"name":"Groundwater","volume":"191 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142251104","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
GroundwaterPub Date : 2024-08-16DOI: 10.1111/gwat.13439
Ty Ferre
{"title":"MS Students Are the Missing Link in the Future of Hydrogeology – And How You Can Help!","authors":"Ty Ferre","doi":"10.1111/gwat.13439","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gwat.13439","url":null,"abstract":"<p>As readers of <i>Groundwater</i>, you have all faced a quizzical look when you told someone that you are a hydrogeologist. You have discovered that simply repeating the word—although, after all, it describes itself—is rarely sufficient. So, you have developed your own short explanation for what a hydrogeologist does and why our work is critical to society (one of my favorite is, “You know that water you drank yesterday? You're welcome.”). If you are in a position to hire an entry-level professional hydrogeologist, you are likely to share something else: a growing concern that there are not enough graduates to fill current demand, let alone future needs for our profession.</p><p>In summary, the future of hydrogeology is bright, but we are not producing enough MS-level trained students even to meet the current demand. In addition, universities are moving away from their role as the principal source of master's graduates and are unlikely to fill the future needs of industry or academia.</p><p>The good news is that there are several efforts in progress to address this problem. Some programs (e.g., the University of Neuchatel) have strong enrollment and continue to produce graduates. Other programs are coming together to offer multi-university degrees (e.g., the European ERASMUS+ cooperation project iNUX). In addition, there are efforts to redesign the university-based MS to deliver accessible in-person (e.g., the University of Arizona) or hybrid in-person/online programs (e.g., the University of Kansas and the University of Waterloo). There are also extra-university programs that focus on advanced topics (e.g., the Italian SYMPL School of Hydrogeologic Modeling). Finally, there are efforts to make videos and textbooks available for free to support educational programs (e.g., the micro-video project, the Groundwater Modeling for Decision Support Initiative, and the Groundwater Project).</p><p>We need all of these efforts to succeed if we hope to produce the workforce that will be needed in the future. However, there is a crucial first step that we need to complete as a community to ensure that future students are receiving the training that they need to enter the profession.</p><p>This is where we need your help as groundwater professionals.</p><p>Thank you for being part of the <i>Groundwater</i> community and I hope to work with you to advance our profession into the future!</p>","PeriodicalId":12866,"journal":{"name":"Groundwater","volume":"62 5","pages":"662-663"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2024-08-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/gwat.13439","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141989742","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
GroundwaterPub Date : 2024-08-07DOI: 10.1111/gwat.13435
Miguel E. Valencia, Michael C. Sukop, Grace Oldfield, Angela Montoya, Virginia Walsh, Jayantha Obeysekera, Samantha Barquin, Elizabeth Kelly, Katherine Hagemann, Aliza Karim, Oscar F. Guzman
{"title":"Septic Return Flow Pathlines, Endpoints, and Flows Based on the Urban Miami-Dade Groundwater Model","authors":"Miguel E. Valencia, Michael C. Sukop, Grace Oldfield, Angela Montoya, Virginia Walsh, Jayantha Obeysekera, Samantha Barquin, Elizabeth Kelly, Katherine Hagemann, Aliza Karim, Oscar F. Guzman","doi":"10.1111/gwat.13435","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gwat.13435","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Miami-Dade County (MDC) has over 112,000 septic systems, some of which are at risk of compromise due to water table rise associated with sea level rise. MDC is surrounded by protected water bodies, including Biscayne Bay, with environmentally sensitive ecosystems and is underlain by highly transmissive karstic limestone. The main objective of the study is to provide first estimates of the locations and magnitudes of septic return flows to discharge endpoints. This is accomplished by leveraging MDC's county-scale surface-groundwater model using pathline analysis to estimate the transport and discharge fate of septic system flows under the complex time history of groundwater flow response to pumping, canal management, storms, and other environmental factors. The model covers an area of 4772 km<sup>2</sup> in Southeast Florida. Outputs from the model were used to create a 30-year (2010 to 2040) simulation of the spatial–temporal pathlines from septic input locations to their termination points, allowing us to map flow paths and the spatial distribution of the septic flow discharge endpoints under the simulated conditions. Most septic return flows were discharged to surface water, primarily canals 52,830 m<sup>3</sup>/d and Biscayne Bay (5696 m<sup>3</sup>/d), and well fields (14,066 m<sup>3</sup>/d). Results allow us to identify “hotspots” to guide water quality sampling efforts and to provide recommendations for septic-to-sewer conversion areas that should provide most benefit by reducing nutrient loading to water bodies.</p>","PeriodicalId":12866,"journal":{"name":"Groundwater","volume":"62 6","pages":"957-971"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2024-08-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/gwat.13435","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141903947","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
GroundwaterPub Date : 2024-07-04DOI: 10.1111/gwat.13425
Bwalya Malama, Ying-Fan Lin, Kristopher L. Kuhlman
{"title":"Semi-Analytical Modeling of Transient Stream Drawdown and Depletion in Response to Aquifer Pumping","authors":"Bwalya Malama, Ying-Fan Lin, Kristopher L. Kuhlman","doi":"10.1111/gwat.13425","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gwat.13425","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Analytical and semi-analytical models for stream depletion with transient stream stage drawdown induced by groundwater pumping are developed to address a deficiency in existing models, namely, the use of a fixed stream stage condition at the stream–aquifer interface. Field data are presented to demonstrate that stream stage drawdown does indeed occur in response to groundwater pumping near aquifer-connected streams. A model that predicts stream depletion with transient stream drawdown is developed based on stream channel mass conservation and finite stream channel storage. The resulting models are shown to reduce to existing fixed-stage models in the limit as stream channel storage becomes infinitely large, and to the confined aquifer flow with a no-flow boundary at the streambed in the limit as stream storage becomes vanishingly small. The model is applied to field measurements of aquifer and stream drawdown, giving estimates of aquifer hydraulic parameters, streambed conductance, and a measure of stream channel storage. The results of the modeling and data analysis presented herein have implications for sustainable groundwater management.</p>","PeriodicalId":12866,"journal":{"name":"Groundwater","volume":"62 6","pages":"904-919"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141499988","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}