2D shallow water modeling for MAR implementation: surface–groundwater interaction in Val di Cornia (Tuscany)

Abstract

Surface water and groundwater interactions play a crucial role in water resource management, particularly in overexploited alluvial systems, as in Val di Cornia (Tuscany, Italy). The study area, within the system formed by the lower course of the Cornia River and the alluvial plain aquifer, has hosted a Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) scheme with a monitoring network that has enabled continuous acquisition of different parameters for surface water and groundwater.To further investigate river-aquifer transfer mechanisms, two transects were identified as potential candidates for instrumentation, including some of the existing monitoring piezometers. The analysis of the data thus acquired could, in theory, allow observation of how the aquifer response varies with distance from the river. To isolate the river input, periods of MAR inactivity were identified, and the most significant flood events were analyzed using river stage time series registered from two upstream and downstream stations of the Regional Hydrological Service. This study provides a knowledge base for the development of conceptual and numerical models of river-aquifer interactions, with practical implications for integrated water resource management.