Hydrology and Earth System Sciences www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net 1027-5606 1607-7938 13 1 2009 10.5194/hess-13-69-2009 http://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/13/69/2009/ http://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/13/69/2009/hess-13-69-2009.html http://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/13/69/2009/hess-13-69-2009.pdf 69 77 2009-02-02 Influence of aquifer and streambed heterogeneity on the distribution of groundwater discharge E. Kalbus edda.kalbus@web.de C. Schmidt J. W. Molson F. Reinstorf M. Schirmer Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Centre for Applied Geosciences, Germany UFZ, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Dept. of Environmental Informatics, Germany UFZ, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Dept. of Hydrogeology, Germany Université Laval, Dept. of Geology and Geological Engineering, Canada University of Applied Sciences Magdeburg-Stendal, Dept. of Water and Recycling Management, Germany EAWAG, the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Dept. of Water Resources and Drinking Water, Switzerland now at: acatech – German Academy of Science and Engineering, Germany The spatial distribution of groundwater fluxes through a streambed can be highly variable, most often resulting from a heterogeneous distribution of aquifer and streambed permeabilities along the flow pathways. Using a groundwater flow and heat transport model, we defined four scenarios of aquifer and streambed permeability distributions to simulate and assess the impact of subsurface heterogeneity on the distribution of groundwater fluxes through the streambed: (a) a homogeneous low-<i>K</i> streambed within a heterogeneous aquifer; (b) a heterogeneous streambed within a homogeneous aquifer; (c) a well connected heterogeneous low-<i>K</i> streambed within a heterogeneous aquifer; and (d) a poorly connected heterogeneous low-<i>K</i> streambed within a heterogeneous aquifer. The simulation results were compared with a base case scenario, in which the streambed had the same properties as the aquifer, and with observed data. The results indicated that the aquifer has a stronger influence on the distribution of groundwater fluxes through the streambed than the streambed itself. 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