Optimisation of water extraction considering water demands of water supply, agriculture and ecology

For drinking water supply in the Donauried area (52 km²) approximately 950 l/s groundwater are abstracted from 6 catchment plants with 220 wells. In the Donauried also intensive farming and several natural parks with valuable but drained lower moors are located so that many conflicts have arisen around the water. In a joint research project the goal is to manage the 6 plants' water demands, hydrology and season to achieve a water-optimum for each party. That is to have enough water for water supply, to guarantee farming without affecting groundwater quality and to rewet the lower moors. This task is solved by developing an optimisation algorithm that is based on a numerical groundwater flow model taking into account the water demands of all parties.