Abstract

FACUNDO PEREZ, Cristo; ECHEVERRI-SANCHEZ, Andrés  and  URRUTIA-COBO, Norberto. Estimating groundwater recharge in the geographical valley of the Cauca River, north of the Cauca Department. Rev Cie Téc Agr [online]. 2016, vol.25, n.2, pp. 51-57. ISSN 2071-0054.

Groundwater represents an important alternative toward development of socioeconomic activities in regions where freshwater either does not meet the needs or quality is poor. Nonetheless, its use must be based on its availability. Northern Cauca Department is a flat area with continue agricultural and industrial growth, especially due to groundwater development, which withdrawal is being without any knowledge of the volume offered by the local aquifer. This study aimed to estimate the groundwater recharge as a management and planning tool in both productive activities and human supply. Therefore, the annual aquifer recharge was estimated by water balance. Firstly, a control volume was defined through delineating the hydrogeological boundaries. Then, recharge (rainfall, irrigation water, and surface inflow) and discharge (real evapotranspiration, pumped water, and surface outflow) components were quantified. In conclusion, the annual recharge was about 56 x10⁶ m³, showing the availability of groundwater resources in order to potentiate socioeconomic activities in the region

Keywords : Geographical Valley of Cauca River; groundwater management; water balance.

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