Optimization of Groundwater Exploitation in an Irrigation Area in the Arid Upper Peacock River, NW China: Implications for Sustainable Agriculture and Ecology

Yujuan Su, Fengtian Yang, Yaoxuan Chen, Pan Zhang and Xue Zhang
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Yujuan Su: Key Laboratory of Groundwater Resources and Environment, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun 130021, China
Fengtian Yang: Key Laboratory of Groundwater Resources and Environment, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun 130021, China
Yaoxuan Chen: Key Laboratory of Groundwater Resources and Environment, Ministry of Education, Jilin University, Changchun 130021, China
Pan Zhang: Geophysical Survey Team, Bureau of Coalfield Geology of Jilin Province, Changchun 130033, China
Xue Zhang: China Nuclear Power Engineering Co. Ltd., Beijing 100840, China

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 16, 1-20

Abstract: Groundwater is the main irrigation water source in the Upper Peacock River. As fast enlargement of irrigation areas continues in recent years, the groundwater level declines continuously and has posed a threat to the sustainability of local agriculture and ecology. A numerical model was established with the code MODFLOW–2000 in order to predict the declining trend of groundwater level and formulate measures to counter the overexploitation, in which the river–aquifer interaction was elaborated and characterized by field survey. The results show that under current intensity of groundwater withdrawal, the levels of both unconfined and confined waters would decline continuously in 7 years from 2015. To stop the groundwater level from declining on the regional scale, the withdrawal rate should be compressed by 45% with respect to that in 2015. Moreover, taking consideration of the constraint of maintaining the ecological water level in the vicinity of the Euphrates Poplar forest in the study area, the withdrawal rate should be compressed 70% for seven towns around the forest.

Keywords: irrigation area; arid region; groundwater overexploitation; modeling; river-aquifer interaction; optimization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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