Conceptualization and characterization of ground-water systems using Geographic Information Systems

The correlation and synthesis of a variety of two- and three-dimensional data is necessary to conceptualize and characterize ground-water flow systems in regional or site-specific areas. This paper presents an integrated, multi-disciplinary, step-wise approach for conceptualizing, characterizing, and numerically simulating ground-water flow systems using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). thod presented involves seven iterative steps that can be accomplished manually or by using GIS: (1) Data gathering and preparation; (2) Field (on-site) conceptualization; (3) Surface characterization; (4) Subsurface characterization; (5) Hydrogeologic model characterization; (6) Hydrologic system characterization; and (7) Numerical model simulation. GIS may be used for: (1) data management, analysis and visualization; (2) the integration of diverse data sources; (3) rapid development, visualization and testing of alternative hydrogeologic and hydrologic system models; (4) the incorporation of contouring, attribute tables, and statistical analysis during data analysis and model development; and (5) the integration of basic and interpreted data bases with numerical modeling for purposes of model design, parameter discretization, statistical evaluation and sensitivity analysis.