Field and Model Investigations of Freshwater Lenses in Coastal Aquifers
Pieter S. Pauw (2015), PhD thesis, Wageningen University, Wageningen, 168 pp.
Freshwater lenses are convex bodies of fresh groundwater that are underlain by groundwater with a significant higher salinity. In coastal areas, freshwater lenses are of vital importance for ecosystems and freshwater supply. A major problem of sustaining freshwater supply from freshwater lens is saltwater intrusion, i.e., the invasion of saline groundwater into a fresh groundwater body. In many coastal areas saltwater intrusion has led to well closure and reduced freshwater supply. Furthermore, in the future saltwater intrusion is expected to increase due to sea level rise, climate change, land subsidence, and increasing population density in coastal areas. In the Netherlands, these stresses will also have a severe impact on the fresh coastal groundwater reserves. In view of this, a research project aimed at (1) Improving the insight into the modeling of freshwater lenses and (2) defining measures to increase freshwater supply from freshwater lenses.
