Finding Groundwater

Featured Articles
December 4, 2019 The 2015­-2018 drought, the longest, but less severe of droughts experienced by India raises alarm on the negative effects of future droughts on water security in the country.
India will see more droughts in the future. (Image Source: Wikimedia Commons)
October 25, 2019 Groundwater use has doubled in Pune. Comprehensive mapping of groundwater resources and better management and governance is the need of the hour.
Groundwater, an exploited resource (Image Source: India Water Portal)
October 1, 2019 Deconstructing the traditional narrow engineering based policy discourses around floods and droughts and connecting them to social and cultural realities is the need of the hour in India.
Water talk Series at Mumbai (Image Source:Tata Insitute of Social Sciences)
September 30, 2019 The recently concluded 4 day conference in Bangalore looked at the current state of global water resource challenges & future pathways to achieve the SDGs, while ensuring equity in access to all.
Charles Vorosmarty, Chair, COMPASS Initiative, Water Future at the opening plenary on advanced water system assessments to address water security challenges of the 21st century.
September 28, 2019 Groundwater, drawn at rapid rates from peri-urban areas of Hyderabad is now turning into a commodity, controlled and distributed by a few, to meet the needs of the urban elite.
Groundwater in Hyderabad, in peril (Image Source: India Water Portal)
September 25, 2019 Making false doomsday claims of a water crisis could support problematic mega solutions, which could lead to more problems.
India's demand for water will exceed supply by a factor of two by 2030, as per a NITI Aayog report (Image: Vinoth Chandar, Flickr Commons (CC BY 2.0))
Hydrologic properties of rocks – A presentation by ACWADAM
The understanding of storage, transmission of water within the ground is essential to watershed programmes Posted on 19 Sep, 2010 06:22 PM

This presentation by ACWADAM deals with hydrologic properties of the rock framework in which groundwater occurs and through which it moves. In watershed programmes, it is necessary to develop a correct understanding of the storage and transmission of water within such channels because the shape of openings in a rock or sediment, their size, volume and interconnection play a vital part in the hydraulic characteristics of an aquifer.

Groundwater management protocols and pilot experiences – A presentation by ACWADAM
An understanding of identification of recharge area, its protection and recharge enhancement Posted on 19 Sep, 2010 05:09 PM

This presentation by ACWADAM deals with introducing groundwater management protocols for wells in different phases of groundwater use. These protocols include geo-hydrology in watershed development, protection of recharge areas, efficient well use, pump capacity regulation, distance with respect to drinking water well regulation, depth regulation in drinking water well, regulation of agricultural water use and groundwater management through sharing.

Vertical distribution of groundwater – A presentation by ACWADAM
What is the vertical distribution of groundwater? Where is the occurrence of groundwater? Hydrogeology explained Posted on 12 Sep, 2010 01:22 PM

This presentation by ACWADAM explains the occurrence of groundwater and deals with the vertical distribution of groundwater. To begin with, the openings in rocks in the zone of rock fracture such as intergranular openings, vesicles in volcanic rock, joints & fractures and solution cavities are described.

Type of rocks – A presentation by ACWADAM
Understanding the three basic types of rocks that are found in nature – igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic is essential for better management of water Posted on 11 Sep, 2010 08:07 PM

This presentation by ACWADAM deals with the three basic types of rocks that are found in nature – igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic. Rocks are classified on the basis of minerals & chemical composition, by texture and by the processes that formed them.

Rocks
Hydraulic conductivity: The ability of the rock material to allow the flow of groundwater – A presentation by ACWADAM
Permeability of the rock or rock material and is its ability to allow the flow of groundwater. An understanding this helps in better groundwater management Posted on 27 Aug, 2010 08:10 AM

hydraulic conductivityThis presentation by ACWADAM on hydraulic conductivity deals with the hydrologic properties of rocks that signify the status of a rock as a good or poor aquifer. The status of a rock with regard to groundwater occurrence and movement is decided by its porosity (specific yield, more practically) and its hydraulic conductivity. These properties decide whether a rock can store and transmit groundwater.

Hydraulic conductivity is also commonly called as permeability of the rock or rock material and is its ability to allow the flow of groundwater through it. A rock with good hydraulic conductivity allows groundwater to easily flow through it.  

The presentation describes Darcy’s Apparatus, which comprises of a glass cylinder filled with porous sand. The glass cylinder with the sand bed had an inlet for inflow of water and an outlet for outflow of water. Two vertical glass tubes (manometers) are fitted in the sand tube placed at a fixed distance from each other to measure the respective levels (hydraulic heads).

Karst Hydrogeology – A presentation by ACWADAM
An understanding of carbonate rocks Posted on 27 Aug, 2010 12:42 AM

This presentation by ACWADAM deals with Karst hydrogeology, a term used to denote the topography over limestones, dolomites or gypsum rich rocks where there are sinkholes, caverns and lack of surface streams. Karst mainly refers to carbonate rocks: Limestones (CaCO3) or Dolomites (MgCa[CO]).

The formation of carbonate rocks can be traced to physical and chemical deposition. Physical deposition is clastic in nature formed by deposition of particles carried in suspension. It is marked by higher primary porosity and low secondary porosity. Chemical deposition is in the form of precipitate formed by deposition of particles from solution. Contrary to physical deposition it is marked by low primary porosity and high secondary porosity.

Karst
Points of groundwater discharge: Types of springs – A presentation by ACWADAM
Understanding springs, their characteristics and types. Posted on 26 Aug, 2010 08:52 PM

This presentation by ACWADAM deals with springs, their characteristics and types. Springs are indicated by locations or points on the ground surface, where water from beneath the ground emerges on to the surface. A common example is of an overflowing unconfined aquifer.

Some of the characteristics of springs are:

  • Discharge from spring may be constant or variable.
  • Springs can be perennial or seasonal.
  • Discharge from a spring may vary between from a trickle to about 100 cum per second.
  • Difficulty in access.
  • Variation in discharge.
  • Temperature of spring water may vary from mean atmospheric temperature to lower or higher, even boiling temperatures. Hot quality water springs are common to many parts of the world.

Spring or "bawdi"
Augmenting groundwater resources by artificial recharge: A case study of Kolwan valley by ACWADAM
Rise in groundwater resources by artificial recharge- a study of Kolwan Valley Posted on 24 Aug, 2010 04:19 PM

The presentation by ACWADAM deals with a case study of augmenting groundwater resources by artificial recharge in Kolwan valley, Mulshi taluka, Pune. The DfID funded project was undertaken by the British Geological Survey in collaboration with its partners in India from 2002–2005. The objectives of the study were:

  • Improved knowledge of the impacts of managed aquifer recharge in different physical and socio-economic settings.
  • Guidance on scope and effectiveness of managed aquifer recharge for implementers, funders and policy makers.
  • Dissemination of knowledge.

Pumping tests on wells: A means of measuring the storage and transmission properties of aquifers
Assessing the capacity of aquifers with pump tests Posted on 24 Aug, 2010 10:03 AM

The presentation by ACWADAM is part of the training module developed by them on “Planning, development and management of groundwater with special reference to watershed management programmes”. Pumping a well and observing the effect of such pumping on the water level in the pumped well as well as in the adjoining parts of the aquifer through observation wells is the basic procedure involved in a pumping test.

Energy supply and the expansion of groundwater irrigation in the Indus-Ganges Basin - A working paper by Challenge Program on Water and Food
Energy and price influence groundwater development affecting the millions of lives and their livelihoods Posted on 22 Aug, 2010 08:27 PM

The paper by International Water Management Institute (IWMI), Challenge Programme for Water and Food (CPWF) and University of Arizona deals with energy supply and expansion of groundwater irrigation in the Indus-Ganges basin. Irrigation using groundwater has expanded rapidly in South Asia since the inception of the Green Revolution in the 1970s and it represents the largest source of irrigation in the basin.

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