Potential Use of Treated Wastewater as Groundwater Recharge Using GIS Techniques and Modeling Tools in Dhuleil-Halabat Well-Field/Jordan

Abstract

Due to limited rainfall and precipitations, different developing countries depend on groundwater (G.W.) resources to challenge water scarcity. This practice of continuous and excessive G.W. pumping has led to severe water shortages and deteriorated water quality in different countries. Recharging of treated wastewater (TWW) into G.W. provides a critical solution for solving water scarcity, extending the well's service life, and maintaining the G.W. supply. However, effective injection practice requires accurate tools and methods to determine the best location for groundwater recharge (GWRC). This work offers a new tool based on GIS–Multi-Criteria Analysis to identify the potential site and locations for GWRC with TWW. The developed methodology was applied to one of the most used well-field areas in Jordan (Dhuleil-Halabat). The G.W. flow for the B-B2/A7 formation system in the area of study was simulated using Processing Modflow (version 8.0). The analysis combined six thematic maps produced following the environmental, technical, and economic criteria to draw conclusions and recommendations. Both steady and transient conditions were used to predict the future changes that might occur under different stresses and after continuous GWR. The study evaluated three possible scenarios of artificial GWRC to evaluate the process efficiency and determine the effect on the water table level. The results revealed that only 0.05% (0.14 Km2) of the total surface area of 450 Km2 is suitable for GWRC. A GWRC with TWW at a rate of 3.65 Mm3/year (MCMY) would provide a good G.W. table recovery to 39.68 m in the year 2025, maintain a steady-state water table ≥ of 50.77 m for up to six years, and secure water supply for future generations. The proposed methodology can be used as a useful tool that can be applied to regulate the GWRC practice worldwide.