Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Modeling Vulnerability Of Groundwater To Pollution Under Future Scenarios Of Climate Change And Biofuels-Related Land Use Change: A Case Study In North Dakota, Usa, Ruopu Li, James W. Merchant

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Modeling groundwater vulnerability to pollution is critical for implementing programs to protect groundwater quality.Most groundwater vulnerability modeling has been based on current hydrogeology and land use condi- tions. However, groundwater vulnerability is strongly dependent on factors such as depth-to-water, recharge and land use conditions thatmay change in response to future changes in climate and/or socio-economic condi- tions. In this research, a modeling framework, which employs three sets of models linked within a geographic information system (GIS) environment, was used to evaluate groundwater pollution risks under future climate and land use changes in North Dakota. The results showed that areas with …