Effect of Sea Level Rise and Groundwater Withdrawal on Seawater Intrusion in the Gulf Coast Aquifer: Implications for Agriculture

Abstract

The two main factors contributing to depletion of freshwater resources are climate change and anthropological variables. This study presents statistical analyses that are local in its specifics yet global in its relevance. The decline in Gulf Coast aquifer water quality and quantity has been alarming especially with the increased demand on fresh water in neighboring non-coastal communities. This study used seawater levels, groundwater use, and well data to investigate the association of these factors on the salinity of water indicated by chloride levels. Statistical analyses were conducted pointing to the high significance of both sea water level and groundwater withdrawals to chloride concentrations. However, groundwater withdrawal had higher significance which points to the need of water management systems in order to limit groundwater use. The findings also point to the great impact of increased groundwater salinity in the Gulf Coast aquifer on agriculture and socioeconomic status of coastal communities. The high costs of desalinization point to the increased signification of water rerouting and groundwater management systems. Further investigation and actions are in dire need to manage these vulnerabilities of the coastal communities.

Investigation of transient sea level rise impacts on water quality of unconfined shallow coastal aquifers

“…Their results showed that although an SLR of 1 m in all three aquifers could noticeably influence the SWI and piezometric heads, the effects of reduced recharge rates and increased pumping rates on SWI were substantially greater. Their results confirmed the dominant effects of over-extraction on transient SWI in coastal aquifers which combined with SLR could threaten the fresh groundwater resources (Anderson and Al-Thani 2016). Colombani et al (2016) developed a three-dimensional density-dependent groundwater flow model using SEA-WAT to study the SLR impact on SWI quantity by 2050 in an unconfined coastal aquifer in the Po Delta, Italy.…”

A Framework for Incorporating the Impact of Water Quality on Water Supply Stress: An Example from Louisiana, USA

“…The expansion of arid and semiarid landscapes, as well as anthropogenic forcing has led to increases in the salinity of many river systems (Reynolds et al, 2007;Cañedo-Arg€ uelles et al, 2013;Borrok and Engle, 2014). Moreover, growing populations in coastal regions coupled with relative sea-level rise has increased the amount of salt water encroachment impacting both surface water and groundwater (Frederick and Major, 1997;Anderson and Al-Thani, 2016). In many cases the use of energy-intensive (and expensive) desalination technologies has become necessary to alleviate water stress in these regions (e.g., Ghaffour et al, 2013).…”

Percepción social de la salinización del agua para uso doméstico en Puerto Madero, Chiapas, México

“…Se estima que el 38%, de la población mundial se encuentra asentada en una franja situada a 20 m de altitud y 20 km de distancia de la línea de costa (Small & Nicholls, 2003), siendo mayor la densidad de la población costera que la que habita tierra adentro (Neumann et al, 2015). Esta mayor concentración poblacional genera más presión sobre los recursos costeros y ocasiona drásticos impactos como la sobreexplotación, la contaminación y la salinización de los acuíferos (Anderson & Al-Thani, 2016).…”