Abstract
Securing water pumping is a considerable challenge in small, flat atoll islands where rivers and lakes do not develop. Excess pumping due to water shortages during severe droughts has caused up-coning in the fresh groundwater lens (FGL). Since FGL may not recover from up-coning, very few researchers have attempted to clarify the three-dimensional pumping effect on the saltwater–freshwater interface of FGL. The purpose of this research is twofold: (1) to clarify the three-dimensional distributed pumping effect on the FGL flow in Laura Island, and (2) to suggest the up-coning mitigation method for the FGL on Laura Island (Laura Lens). The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), a region of increasing population growth that could burden Laura Lens, was selected as the research site. First, we collected various on-site information and analyzed the hydrological data. We observed a correlation between the rainfall data recorded on Laura Island and Majuro Atoll. Subsequently, numerical simulation using the SEAWAT model clarified the movement of Laura Lens during water pumping in a drought situation. As a result, we could also report the optimum period and the volume of water pumping for the Laura Lens. In conclusion, findings for RMI can facilitate sustainable management and conservation of FGL on atoll islands to reduce up-coning by realizing distributed pumping.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bailey RT, Jenson JW (2014) Effects of marine overwash for atoll aquifers: environmental and human factors. Ground Water 52:694–704. https://doi.org/10.1111/gwat.12117
Bailey RT, Jenson JW, Olsen AE (2009) Numerical modeling of atoll island hydrogeology. Ground Water 47:184–196. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6584.2008.00520.x
Chui TFM, Terry JP (2012) Modeling fresh water lens damage and recovery on atolls after storm-wave washover. Ground Water 50:412–420. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6584.2011.00860.x
Chui TFM, Terry JP (2013) Influence of sea-level rise on freshwater lenses of different atoll island sizes and lens resilience to storm-induced salinization. J Hydrol 502:18–26. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2013.08.013
Comte C, Join JL, Banton O, Nocoline E (2014) Modelling the response of fresh groundwater to climate and vegetation changes in coral islands. Hydrogeol J 22:1905–1920. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10040-014-1160-y
EPPSO (Economic Policy, Planning, and Statistics Office) (2012) Republic of the Marshall Islands 2011 census of population and housing report. EPPSO, Majuro, Marshall Islands and Secretariat of the Pacific Community, Noumea Cedex, New Caledonia
Gingerich SB, Voss CI, Johnson AG (2017) Seawater-flooding events and impact on freshwater lenses of low-lying islands: controlling factors, basic management and mitigation. J Hydrol 551:676–688. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2017.03.001
Griggs JE, Peterson FL (1993) Ground-water flow dynamics and development strategies at the atoll scale. Ground Water 31:209–220. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6584.1993.tb01813.x
Guo W, Langevin CD (2002) User’s guide to SEAWAT: a computer program for simulation of three-dimensional variable-density ground-water flow. USGS Tech Water Resour Investig 6-A7:7–18
Herman ME, Buddemeier RW, Wheatcraft SW (1986) A layered aquifer model of atoll island hydrology: validation of a computer simulation. J Hydrol 84:303–322. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1694(86)90129-0
Holding S, Allen DM (2015) Wave overwash impact on small islands: generalised observations of freshwater lens response and recovery for multiple hydrogeological settings. J Hydrol 529:1324–1335. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2015.08.052
Koda K (2015) Countermeasures against groundwater salinity problem in Laura island—a case study in Majuro atoll, the Republic of the Marshall Islands. J Agric Dev Stud 26:30–36 ((in Japanese))
Koda K, Kobayashi T, Ishida S, Yoshimoto S (2013) Estimation of hydraulic parameters of Laura lens aquifer. J Jpn Soc Irrig Drain Reclam Eng 81:541–545 ((in Japanese))
Langevin CD, Guo W (2006) MODFLOW/MT3DMS-based simulation of variable-density ground water flow and transport. Ground Water 44:339–351. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6584.2005.00156.x
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan (2022) Republic of the Marshall Islands and Medical Situation in the World. https://www.mofa.go.jp/mofaj/index.html. Accessed on 31 Mar 2022 (in Japanese)
Oberdorfer JA, Hogan PJ, Buddemeier RW (1990) Atoll island hydrogeology: flow and freshwater occurrence in a tidally dominated system. J Hydrol 120:327–340. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1694(90)90157-s
Presley TK (2005) Effects of the 1998 drought on the freshwater lens in the Laura Area, Majuro Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Island. USGS Sci Investig Rep 2005–5098:1–40. https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20055098
Sheng C, Han D, Xu H, Li F, Zhang Y, Shen Y (2020) Evaluating dynamic mechanisms and formation process of freshwater lenses on reclaimed atoll islands in the South China Sea. J Hydrol 584:124641-1–124641-14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2020.124641
Terry JP, Chui TFM (2012) Evaluating the fate of freshwater lenses on atoll islands after eustatic sea-level rise and cyclone-driven inundation: a modelling approach. Glob Planet Chang 88–89:76–84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2012.03.008
Underwood MR, Peterson FL, Voss CI (1992) Groundwater lens dynamics of atoll islands. Water Resour Res 11:2889–2902. https://doi.org/10.1029/92wr01723
Vacher HL, Ayers JF (1980) Hydrology of small Oceanic islands—utility of an estimate of recharge inferred from the chloride concentration of the freshwater lenses. J Hydrol 45:21–37. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1694(80)90003-7
Wallace CD, Bailey RT (2017) Geohydrologic factors governing atoll island groundwater resources. J Hydrol Eng ASCE 22:05017004-1–050170004-12. https://doi.org/10.1061/(asce)he.1943-5584.0001499
Werner AD, Sharp HK, Galvis SC, Post VEA, Sinclair P (2017) Hydrogeology and management of freshwater lenses on atoll islands: review of current knowledge and research needs. J Hydrol 551:819–844. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2017.02.047
White I, Falkland T (2010) Management of freshwater lenses on small Pacific islands. Hydrogeol J 18:227–246. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10040-009-0525-0
Acknowledgements
This research was conducted as an activity of the Islands Environment Conservation Project conducted by the joint research between JIRCAS and the Ministry of Resources and Development of the Republic of the Marshall Islands from 2008 to 2015. We would like to express our profound gratitude to the Environmental Protection Agency in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Majuro Water and Sewer Company, and the National Institute for Rural Engineering of Japan, the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, etc.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Koda, K., Tsujimura, M. & Uchida, T. Groundwater flow and water pumping method during drought in atoll islands: Laura Island in the Republic of the Marshall Islands. Paddy Water Environ 21, 353–363 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10333-023-00933-x
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10333-023-00933-x