Impacts of groundwater extraction on salinization risk in a semi-arid floodplain

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2013

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Alaghmand, S.
Beecham, S.
Hassanli, A.

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Journal article

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Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences, 2013; 13(12):3405-3418

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In the lower River Murray in Australia, a combination of a reduction in the frequency, duration and magnitude of natural floods, rising saline water tables in floodplains, and excessive evapotranspiration have led to an irrigationinduced groundwater mound forcing the naturally saline groundwater onto the floodplain. It is during the attenuation phase of floods that these large salt accumulations are likely to be mobilised and discharged into the river. This has been highlighted as the most significant risk in the Murray- Darling Basin and the South Australian Government and catchment management authorities have subsequently developed salt interception schemes (SIS). The aim of these schemes is to reduce the hydraulic gradient that drives the regional saline groundwater towards the River Murray. This paper investigates the interactions between a river (River Murray in South Australia) and a saline semi-arid floodplain (Clark's floodplain) that is significantly influenced by groundwater lowering due to a particular SIS.

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Copyright 2013 The Authors. This work is distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/)

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