GroMoPo Metadata for Ergene River Basin sandy complex aquifer model

This study aims to determine the safe and sustainable development and management of groundwater resources in Ergene River Basin located in northwestern Turkey. A numerical groundwater model was developed for the Sandy Complex aquifer, which is the most productive and the most widespread aquifer in the basin. The finite difference model with 5900 cells was used to represent the steady and unsteady flow in the aquifer. The model was calibrated in two steps: a steady state calibration by using the observed groundwater levels of January 1970, followed by a transient calibration by using the observed groundwater levels for the period of January 1970 and December 2000. The resulting model was used to develop groundwater pumping scenarios in order to predict the changes in the aquifer system under a set of different pumpage conditions for a planning period of 30 years between January 2001 and December 2030. A total of eight pumping scenarios were developed under transient flow conditions for the planning period and the results were evaluated to determine the safe and sustainable yields of the aquifer. The results, presented in the form of a trade-off curve, demonstrate that the continuation of the present pumping rates exceeds both the safe and the sustainable yields of the aquifer system.