Evaluation of Groundwater Resources in alluvial aquifer Based on MODFLOW Program, Case Study: Evan plain (Iran)

ABSTRACT: This paper presents the results of a mathematical groundwater model (Groundwater Modeling Software (GMS) & MODFLOW-2000 code) developed for Evan sub basin - the semi-arid region at northwestern Khuzestan province (Iran) - employing conceptual groundwater modeling approach. The source/ sink coverage, recharge coverage, extraction coverage, return flow coverage was considered for this work. The model was calibrated and verified using historical and observed water level data for periods 2005 to 2006 and 2006 to 2007, respectively. The model was run to generate groundwater scenario for a 10 year period from 2005 to 2015 considering the existing rate of groundwater draft and recharge. The water budget predictions indicate a decrease from 8.34 to 4.43 MCM in groundwater storage system. The predicted water table contour maps for the years 2015 have been generated. Results show that in this plain, over exploitation of groundwater will leads to extreme reduction of water resources in period 2014-2015. High accuracy of verified model in prediction of aquifer behavior can ensure the researchers to planning and decision in management strategies.