The relationship of surface deformation to groundwater storage and quality in the San Joaquin Valley, California
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Land subsidence due to groundwater pumping in the San Joaquin Valley of California is known to cause many negative side effects, including a loss of groundwater storage. The general theory behind surface deformation, which includes subsidence and rebound, due to changes in the groundwater system, is well established. Surface deformation occurs as a direct result of changes in water level in an aquifer system, and can be permanent or recoverable, depending on the stress history of the aquifer system. An advanced satellite method known as Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) can be used to measure surface deformation with ~cm accuracy, at a resolution of ~100 m and measurements every 10 to 40 days. In spite of our ability to measure surface deformation with this method, and the existing theory describing the relation of deformation to changes in water level, it remains challenging to relate this deformation to changes in the aquifer system because so much information is required to do so accurately. The goal of this thesis is to develop methods to improve our ability to monitor and model groundwater storage and quality by incorporating InSAR with geological, geophysical and water quality datasets. This includes developing methods that estimate how much observed deformation is permanent, methods that predict deformation given water level changes, and methods that relate deformation to arsenic contamination. By integrating multiple datasets with InSAR, we are able to extract more useful hydrogeological information that provides water managers with tools to map and model deformation due to changes in the groundwater system, as well as its impacts on groundwater storage and quality. Our key findings are that 1) in the San Joaquin Valley, 54-98% of the subsidence that occurred from 2007-2010 throughout our study area was permanent, 2) by combining InSAR data with airborne electromagnetic (AEM) data, we are able to model surface deformation over time and improve estimates of the subsurface hydrostratigraphy, as well as hydrologic, geomechanical and rock physics parameters, 3) our modeling indicates that the land has subsided by as much as 3 m since 1990 in one specific location within our study area, and 4) land subsidence resulting from overpumping is linked to arsenic contamination in the San Joaquin Valley aquifer system.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Form | electronic resource; remote; computer; online resource |
| Extent | 1 online resource. |
| Place | California |
| Place | [Stanford, California] |
| Publisher | [Stanford University] |
| Copyright date | 2018; ©2018 |
| Publication date | 2018; 2018 |
| Issuance | monographic |
| Language | English |
Creators/Contributors
| Author | Smith, Ryan Glen |
|---|---|
| Degree supervisor | Knight, Rosemary (Rosemary Jane), 1953- |
| Thesis advisor | Knight, Rosemary (Rosemary Jane), 1953- |
| Thesis advisor | Fendorf, Scott |
| Thesis advisor | Zebker, Howard A |
| Degree committee member | Fendorf, Scott |
| Degree committee member | Zebker, Howard A |
| Associated with | Stanford University, Department of Geophysics. |
Subjects
| Genre | Theses |
|---|---|
| Genre | Text |
Bibliographic information
| Statement of responsibility | Ryan Glen Smith. |
|---|---|
| Note | Submitted to the Department of Geophysics. |
| Thesis | Thesis Ph.D. Stanford University 2018. |
| Location | electronic resource |
Access conditions
- Copyright
- © 2018 by Ryan Glen Smith
- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).
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