Analysis of the Development of Shallow Groundwater Supplies by Pumping from Ponds

摘要

Continued pumping from the principal artesian aquifer in coastal Georgia has led to a general decline of the piezometric surface in the Brunswick area. As the groundwater level has declined, saline has intruded into freshwater zones. Since coastal Georgia depends heavily on this groundwater resource, its loss would be a severe problem. A shallow, unconfirmed aquifer overlays the artesian aquifer and receives surface recharge. Two uses for this shallow aquifer have been proposed: (1) recharging the artesian aquifer through connector wells; or (2) using the shallow as a direct water source through development of large diameter, shallow wells or ponds. This study explores the second alternative through use of a numerical model to study the hydraulics of flow to a pond in an unconfined aquifer. The groundwater hydraulics problem is solved by the finite element method for two-dimensional pits and axisymmetric ponds in phreatic aquifers for steady-state and transient cases.