Groundwater engineering education: an application of HYDRUS 1D modelling to study groundwater flow and solute transport in some selected locations of NSW

This study which is a part of groundwater engineering education investigated water and solute transport using HYDRUS 1D for unsaturated zone of three distinct geographical locations of NSW situated in the proximity of Australia’s largest groundwater reservoirs. The diverse climatic conditions ranging from subtropic moderate of Albury and Singleton to semi-arid of Lightning Ridge with significant variations in the meteorological parameters were researched and analysed to simulate the solute concentration along the soil profile of 100 m considering root water uptake. The results showed variations in solute concentration peaks based on the input of rainfall suggesting that frequent rainfall reduces the concentration accumulation. These simulations thus, were useful in deducing the effect of salt accumulation on solute residence times and concentration distributions in relation to climate, temperature, soil properties, land practices and irrigation methods. It has been helpful to understand their influence on groundwater quality to make informed decisions on the use of Australia’s most valuable water resource.