Artificial Recharge of Groundwater

Book excerpt: Artificial Recharge of Groundwater focuses on artificial recharge of groundwater basins as a means to increase the natural supply of groundwater, along with the technical issues involved. Special emphasis is placed on the use of reclaimed municipal wastewater as a source for artificial recharge of groundwater. This book is comprised of 26 chapters organized into five sections. After reviewing the state of the art of artificial recharge of groundwater, the discussion turns to the fundamental aspects of groundwater recharge, including the role of artificial recharge in groundwater basin management, recharge methods, hydraulics, monitoring, and modeling. The next section considers pretreatment processes for wastewater and renovation of wastewater with rapid-infiltration land treatment systems and describes the health effects of wastewater reuse in groundwater recharge. A number of artificial recharge operations using reclaimed wastewater are then highlighted, focusing on cases in various countries including Israel, Germany, Poland, Japan, the Netherlands, and the United States. The remaining chapters look at the extent of contaminant removal by the soil system and the fate of micropollutants during groundwater recharge as well as the legal and economic aspects of groundwater recharge. Research needs for groundwater quality management are also explored. This monograph is written for civil and sanitary engineers, agricultural engineers, hydrologists, environmental scientists, and research scientists as well as public works officials, consulting engineers, agriculturalists, industrialists, and students at colleges and universities.