Estimation of Streamflow Depletion Caused by Groundwater Withdrawal in the Bokhacheon Watershed in South Korea Using the Modified SWAT Model

Abstract

Understanding the effects of groundwater withdrawal on streamflow depletion is important for effectively managing water resources. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model has a groundwater module to calculate the groundwater budget and groundwater discharge. However, the water pumped from the aquifer is not considered in the SWAT module that estimates groundwater discharge. Therefore, this module was modified to consider the impact of groundwater pumping on the changes in groundwater discharge in the Bokhacheon watershed, South Korea. The model’s water transfer module was improved to allow water from the aquifer to be transferred to destination locations, such as residential, industrial, and agricultural lands. Using the modified SWAT, streamflow responses to groundwater extraction were simulated for 2011–2019. The groundwater withdrawal induced decreases of 14.6 and 24.2% in low and drought flows, respectively, at the watershed’s outlet. The groundwater withdrawals decreased groundwater flow and total water yield by 23.5% and 9.8%, respectively, and increased surface flow, lateral flow, percolation, soil water, and evapotranspiration owing to the increased soil moisture resulting from the partial re-infiltration of the groundwater pumped for agricultural irrigation. The modified SWAT can effectively estimate streamflow depletion resulting from groundwater pumping without extensive hydrogeological input data and computational time.

Keywords

• streamflow depletion
• groundwater withdrawal
• SWAT
• hydrological components