Deuterium composition and flow path analysis as additional calibration targets to calibrate groundwater flow simulation in a coastal wetlands system

A conceptual model of the Lake Warden coastal wetlands system, Western Australia, was developed using hydraulic, chemical and stable isotopic data, and formed the basis for a groundwater flow model using the finite element numerical code (FEFLOW). The system to be modeled is complex. The surface water and groundwater within the wetlands system show varying salinity and isotopic composition over short distances and time frames. As a first step, the flow model was calibrated to observed groundwater levels measured since 2001 for both steady state and transient stresses. Particle tracking analysis was conducted to test the source areas of water discharging to the lakes within the wetlands system. The analysis was able to delineate the connectivity between the lakes in the wetland and the flow path. Enrichment of isotopic concentration is evident along a NE–SW transect and the data set provides a means for calibrating a detailed transport model. The study incorporates the varying deuterium composition of the water bodies directly into a transport model and a good match between observed and simulated temporal variations along the transect indicates that the model closely simulated the dynamics of water exchange between the lakes and groundwater within the system.