info:eu-repo/semantics/doctoralThesis
Potential for a Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) project in the Namoi basin, Australia
Autor
Fuentes San Román, Ignacio Francisco
Institución
Resumen
This thesis evaluated the potential for managed aquifer recharge (MAR) in the Namoi basin. The catchment was hydrologically characterised. Several studies combining remote sensing and hydrologic information were carried out. The first study sought to study the open water evaporation at the catchment scale, and the long-term changes in rainfall, temperatures, humidity, and reference evapotranspiration. These present evidence of a general intensification on the water cycle and a reduction in the frequency of surface water, leading to less lumped evaporation, but increasing evaporation per unit surface. This justifies the implementation of alternative water storage methods, such as MAR. Likewise, spatiotemporal patterns of flooding in the catchment and their frequency were studied considering the water surplus from those events as a key aspect for the development of a MAR project. Thus, algorithms for water volume quantification during floods and the frequency of such events were also evaluated. The groundwater flow medium was studied using natural language processing (NLP). An NLP model specific for geosciences was developed. This demonstrated to be more effective than general domain models in characterising the multidimensional space between concepts of a specific domain. Using this model, lithological descriptions from boreholes were classified and interpolated to build 3D lithological models. These allowed characterising the hydrogeological setting in the region. Lastly, suitability areas for MAR projects were mapped using hydrological, hydrogeological, and lithological characteristics in the catchment. These maps were validated through the study of groundwater recharge in an area of interest selected by its high suitability. However, the potential for the development of such projects is ultimately limited by current water regulations and water entitlements.