Keywords
unsaturated zone, richards equation, reservoir cascade, swat, swrrb
Start Date
1-7-2004 12:00 AM
Abstract
Understanding the interaction between soil, vegetation and atmosphere processes and groundwater dynamicsis of paramount importance in water resources planning and management in many practical applications. Thisis the case, for example, of the most important agricultural and industrial area in Italy, the Padana Plain,where intensive exploitation of groundwater for domestic and industrial supply coexists with massivediversions from surface water bodies, providing abundant irrigation to one of the most productive agriculturaldistricts in Europe. Hydrological models of such complex systems need to include a number of componentsand should therefore seek a balance between capturing all relevant processes and maintaining datarequirement and computing time at an affordable level. Water transfer through the unsaturated zone is a keyhydrological process, at the interface between surface and ground water. The paper focuses on the analysisof the modelling approaches that are generally used to describe the soil water dynamics in hydrologicalmodels of water resources systems. A physically based approach, using numerical solutions of Richardsequation, and two conceptual models, based on reservoirs cascade schemes, are compared. The analysis ispart of a comprehensive modelling study of water resources in a 700 km2 irrigation district in northern Italy.Simulations are carried out using ten years of rainfall data and a number of soil profiles that are representativeof the pedological characteristics of the study area. Based on the analysis of results, showing significantdifferences in the simulated patterns of output variables, a number of remarks are drawn.
Coupling Surface And Ground Water Processes For Water Resources Simulation In Irrigated Alluvial Basins
Understanding the interaction between soil, vegetation and atmosphere processes and groundwater dynamicsis of paramount importance in water resources planning and management in many practical applications. Thisis the case, for example, of the most important agricultural and industrial area in Italy, the Padana Plain,where intensive exploitation of groundwater for domestic and industrial supply coexists with massivediversions from surface water bodies, providing abundant irrigation to one of the most productive agriculturaldistricts in Europe. Hydrological models of such complex systems need to include a number of componentsand should therefore seek a balance between capturing all relevant processes and maintaining datarequirement and computing time at an affordable level. Water transfer through the unsaturated zone is a keyhydrological process, at the interface between surface and ground water. The paper focuses on the analysisof the modelling approaches that are generally used to describe the soil water dynamics in hydrologicalmodels of water resources systems. A physically based approach, using numerical solutions of Richardsequation, and two conceptual models, based on reservoirs cascade schemes, are compared. The analysis ispart of a comprehensive modelling study of water resources in a 700 km2 irrigation district in northern Italy.Simulations are carried out using ten years of rainfall data and a number of soil profiles that are representativeof the pedological characteristics of the study area. Based on the analysis of results, showing significantdifferences in the simulated patterns of output variables, a number of remarks are drawn.
