Application of groundwater model in coastal aquifer: A case study of Veraval area of Gujarat

The development and management of fresh ground water resources in coastal aquifers are seriously constrained by the presence of seawater intrusion. Seawater intrusion is a process that occurs in virtually all coastal aquifers, where they are in hydraulic continuity with seawater. This process is caused by the higher density of sea water than freshwater. Over the years, many models have been developed to represent and study the problems related to seawater intrusion. Numerical models provide effective tool to handle ground water problems. This paper presents simulation of seawater intrusion in a section of the Veraval coast of Gujarat through Saturated and Unsaturated Transport model and examines the impact of increased pumping scenarios on extent of seawater intrusion. The density driven salt-water intrusion process was simulated with the use of commercially available finite element based software, SUTRA (Saturated–Unsaturated TRAnsport). Initial and boundary conditions determined from the aerial calibration were used to evaluate steady-state, hydraulic heads. Pumping and inflow of coastal area was estimated for three different time periods using the model.