Assessing the Role of Return Flows in Mitigating Groundwater Deficit and Sustainability of Sarab and Asbforoushan Aquifers

Document Type : Research paper

Authors

1 Professor, Department of Water Engineering, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran.

2 PhD in irrigation and drainage, East Azarbaijan Regional Water, Energy Ministry, Tabriz, Iran.

3 Professor, Department of Geology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Tabriz, Tabriz. Iran.

Abstract

The study examined the groundwater balance and the contribution of return flows to the recharge of the Sarab and Asbforoushan aquifers in the Sarab Eastern Azerbaijan of Iran. The main objectives were to quantify the major input and output component and to assess the extent to which return flows could compensate for groundwater storage deficits and improve aquifer sustainability. The groundwater balance equation was thus applied taking into account recharge from precipitation, lateral boundary flows, infiltration from riverbeds and return flows from agricultural, household and industrial water use, as well as groundwater abstraction from Wells, Qantas and Springs and discharge into rivers. The results indicated that groundwater levels have been steadily declining in both aquifers over recent decades, with groundwater levels being more strongly affected by water consumption and anthropogenic activity than by precipitation. The final groundwater balance in the Sarab aquifer was estimated to be slightly positive at +2.8 million m³, while in the Asbforoushan aquifer the balance was estimated to be slightly negative at -1.08 million m³. However, direct precipitation recharge in each aquifer was limited to around 3 million m³, with the bulk of the total recharge coming from lateral boundary flows, riverbed infiltration and return flows. Agricultural runoff, which accounted for 85 and 46 percent of total groundwater withdrawals from the Sarab and Asbforoushan aquifers respectively, was the dominant component of the outflow and put the greatest pressure on the groundwater systems. These findings suggest that the long-term sustainability of the aquifers studied requires integrated demand management, improved irrigation efficiency, effective control of illegal groundwater withdrawal and increased indirect recharge through controlled use of return flows and site-specific intervention.

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References

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Hydrogeology
Volume 10, Issue 2
May 2026
Pages 132-152

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