Estimation of salt water upconing using a steady-state solution for partial completion of a pumped well.

A new steady-state analytical solution to the two-dimensional radial-flow equation was developed for drawdown (head) conditions in an aquifer with constant transmissivity, no-flow conditions at the top and bottom, constant head conditions at a known radial distance, and a partially completed pumping well. The solution was evaluated for accuracy by comparison to numerical simulations using MODFLOW. The solution was then used to estimate the rise of the salt water-fresh water interface (upconing) that occurs under a pumping well, and to calculate the critical pumping rate at which the interface becomes unstable, allowing salt water to enter the pumping well.

Effects of sea-level rise on ground water flow in a coastal aquifer system.

The effects of sea-level rise on the depth to the fresh water/salt water interface were simulated by using a density-dependent, three-dimensional numerical ground water flow model for a simplified hypothetical fresh water lens that is similar to shallow, coastal aquifers found along the Atlantic coast of the United States. Simulations of sea-level rise of 2.65 mm/year from 1929 to 2050 resulted in an increase in water levels relative to a fixed datum, yet a net decrease in water levels relative to the increased sea-level position.