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Prof. Hartmut Wittenberg
Leuphana University Lüneburg, Faculty Sustainability, Institute of Ecology, D 21335 Lueneburg, Germany

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0 Hydrology
0 water management
0 Water history
0 Groundwater–surface water interaction
0 Impacts on water balances

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Journal article
Published: 27 February 2019 in Journal of Hydrology
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Groundwater recharge by precipitation is often assumed by practitioners as well as scientists to be a slow process of filtration through layers of uniform texture analogous to Darcy’s law. In most basins, however, rainwater also finds its way through macropores and preferential pathways to the shallow unconfined aquifers within hours of falling. Recharge phases may extend over several days, increasing groundwater levels, stored volume and hence baseflows into adjoining rivers. In this study, groundwater recharge and storage are computed from baseflow as separated with a nonlinear reservoir algorithm from time series of daily flows at gauging stations in northern Germany. Results are compared to groundwater level fluctuation in the catchments and to daily seepage rates measured in a lysimeter station. Peak times of the fast transfer of rain water through the vadose zone are generally the same. However, while recharge from baseflow ends when baseflow assumes its typical recession, the attenuation of lysimeter seepage may last much longer. The volume of lysimeter seepage is generally higher than the recharge in catchments due not only to different vegetation but also to rim effects impeding direct runoff. Furthermore, the lysimeter walls allow vertical fluxes only. Without further evidence or improved devices, lysimeter seepage should therefore not be indicated as groundwater recharge for the site or catchment. Findings also indicate that the shape of derived recharge unit responses is practically time invariant but with a strong seasonal variation in the recharge-rainfall ratio of precipitation events.

ACS Style

Hartmut Wittenberg; Hafzullah Aksoy; Konrad Miegel. Fast response of groundwater to heavy rainfall. Journal of Hydrology 2019, 571, 837 -842.

AMA Style

Hartmut Wittenberg, Hafzullah Aksoy, Konrad Miegel. Fast response of groundwater to heavy rainfall. Journal of Hydrology. 2019; 571 ():837-842.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Hartmut Wittenberg; Hafzullah Aksoy; Konrad Miegel. 2019. "Fast response of groundwater to heavy rainfall." Journal of Hydrology 571, no. : 837-842.

Journal article
Published: 01 November 2015 in Journal of Hydrology
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Because of water transfers through fissures, cavities, caves and phreatic channels of various sizes and unknown directions, the topographic watersheds of karst catchments have little significance for their aquifers. Most of the flow in the Manavgat River in South Anatolia has its origin outside of the surface watershed and is transferred through karst pathways. Previous investigations found evidence for this by groundwater tracing techniques. In this study, flow recession analysis and baseflow separation are applied to the time series of daily flows 1992–2008 from three gauging stations. Flow recessions were found corresponding to the nonlinear storage-baseflow relationship S = a·Qb, with b values around 0.5 as typical for unconfined groundwater, while the coefficient a showed marked seasonal variations with higher values in the rainy winter time and decreasing values towards the dry summer. For catchments which receive water transfers from other areas, the decrease of a is retarded. Flow recession is slower since more water is available. Baseflow separation by using the same nonlinear model revealed that direct flow, which is mainly surface flow, corresponds roughly to the surface catchments while baseflow, which accounts for most of the total flow, is highly influenced by transfers from karst sink areas outside the surface watersheds. The subsurface transfer was simulated by a nonlinear reservoir routing algorithm. Time series of monthly baseflow from catchments which receive transfer water were compared with those of sinkhole (loss) areas. The procedure allows inferring the origin area of the inflows and estimating the retention or lag time of the transfer.

ACS Style

Ebru Eris; Hartmut Wittenberg. Estimation of baseflow and water transfer in karst catchments in Mediterranean Turkey by nonlinear recession analysis. Journal of Hydrology 2015, 530, 500 -507.

AMA Style

Ebru Eris, Hartmut Wittenberg. Estimation of baseflow and water transfer in karst catchments in Mediterranean Turkey by nonlinear recession analysis. Journal of Hydrology. 2015; 530 ():500-507.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Ebru Eris; Hartmut Wittenberg. 2015. "Estimation of baseflow and water transfer in karst catchments in Mediterranean Turkey by nonlinear recession analysis." Journal of Hydrology 530, no. : 500-507.

Journal article
Published: 21 July 2015 in Resources
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Low flows of the Ilmenau River (1434 km2) in northwest Germany have decreased by about 25% over the last 50 years. In the same period, moderate climate changes have taken place and annual groundwater abstractions for sprinkler irrigation have increased by up to 50 hm3 (million m3), with a strong variation due to the respective prevailing weather conditions. Time-series analyses with multiple regression analysis allow detecting and quantifying different influences on low flows. It is also shown that farmers allocate irrigation water volumes carefully according to seasonal precipitation and temperatures. Decline of groundwater levels in summer and the low flow situation are aggravated by the cumulative effect of higher irrigation in drier years. Groundwater recharge and recovery of the water table have been observed subsequently during the winter season.

ACS Style

Hartmut Wittenberg. Groundwater Abstraction for Irrigation and Its Impacts on Low Flows in a Watershed in Northwest Germany. Resources 2015, 4, 566 -576.

AMA Style

Hartmut Wittenberg. Groundwater Abstraction for Irrigation and Its Impacts on Low Flows in a Watershed in Northwest Germany. Resources. 2015; 4 (3):566-576.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Hartmut Wittenberg. 2015. "Groundwater Abstraction for Irrigation and Its Impacts on Low Flows in a Watershed in Northwest Germany." Resources 4, no. 3: 566-576.

Journal article
Published: 08 June 2015 in Water Supply
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With more than 180,000 date palms, the Palmeral de Elche is the largest palm grove in Europe. In 2000, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) declared a part of it a World Heritage Site. Actually, the Palmeral is a historic irrigation system with rows of palm trees flanking rectangular fields and serving as a windbreak and shade for the cultivation of wheat, alfalfa, fruit trees and vegetables. This system and its cultivation methods were mainly developed during the Islamic period and maintained after the Christian Reconquista in 1265 until recently. The main canal Acequia Mayor supplies irrigation water from the Vinalopó River which is then distributed through secondary canals to the different subsystems and fields as well as for domestic purposes. With an average slope of 1:260 (4‰) the main canal has a flow capacity of about 600 L/s. Owing to the topography, the canal must overcome a number of vertical drops where hydraulic energy must be dissipated. Beside the drop structures, at the same time watermills generate water power for flour production. These watermills have been built since the Islamic era and operated until the last century, when they were abandoned or converted for other uses. There are some descriptive publications and documents dealing with the mills, but there has not yet been any attempt to conduct a technical survey and interpretation. This study explores the remains of 11 watermills and determines the dimensions and technical parameters of this hydro-system. The mills were equipped with turbine-type horizontal waterwheels with hydraulic heads between two and more than 15 m. The observations allow conclusions on mill operation, power yield and flour production. A comprehensive description of this early example of waterpower generation in a multipurpose system is undertaken.

ACS Style

Ignacio Melendez-Pastor; Jose Navarro Pedreño; Hartmut Wittenberg. Watermills in the historic irrigation system ‘Palmeral de Elche’, Spain: an example of early hydropower exploitation. Water Supply 2015, 15, 1140 -1151.

AMA Style

Ignacio Melendez-Pastor, Jose Navarro Pedreño, Hartmut Wittenberg. Watermills in the historic irrigation system ‘Palmeral de Elche’, Spain: an example of early hydropower exploitation. Water Supply. 2015; 15 (5):1140-1151.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Ignacio Melendez-Pastor; Jose Navarro Pedreño; Hartmut Wittenberg. 2015. "Watermills in the historic irrigation system ‘Palmeral de Elche’, Spain: an example of early hydropower exploitation." Water Supply 15, no. 5: 1140-1151.

Journal article
Published: 01 May 2013 in Water Supply
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From about 1650 until 1200 BC Hattuša (pronounced Hattusha) was the capital of the Hittite Empire in central Asia Minor. On the steep terrain of today's ruined city lived and worked thousands of people whose homes, cattle, tools and places of worship had to be supplied with water. The question arose regarding how water was conveyed into the large-scale ponds in the urban area. The silted East Ponds (36,000 m3) and South Ponds (20,000 m3) have been excavated since the 1980s. A supply of the large volumes of water by a long pipeline from outside the city was repeatedly discussed. Due to the topographic, hydraulic and geo-hydrological conditions however, a long distance supply would have been uneconomic and also unnecessary. Still today, many willow fountains in the region are fed by artesian groundwater. It was therefore assumed that the ponds were cut into the slope aquifers and filled during the wet season. To verify this hypothesis, groundwater monitoring stations were installed in the autumn of 2009 directly uphill of the pond banks. Observed groundwater levels 2009–2011 are low in summer but rise above the former pond surfaces during winter. The Hittites used exfiltrating groundwater also in other reservoirs avoiding hefty and strongly varying surface inflows.

ACS Style

Hartmut Wittenberg; Andreas Schachner. The ponds of Hattuša – early groundwater management in the Hittite kingdom. Water Supply 2013, 13, 692 -698.

AMA Style

Hartmut Wittenberg, Andreas Schachner. The ponds of Hattuša – early groundwater management in the Hittite kingdom. Water Supply. 2013; 13 (3):692-698.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Hartmut Wittenberg; Andreas Schachner. 2013. "The ponds of Hattuša – early groundwater management in the Hittite kingdom." Water Supply 13, no. 3: 692-698.

Journal article
Published: 01 July 2010 in Water Science and Technology
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Vast volumes of groundwater are drained by urban sewer systems. This unwanted flow component intrudes into sewer systems through leaky joints or connected house drains. However, unlike urban storm drainage, it has a high seasonal variation corresponding to groundwater storage and long slow recessions similar to baseflow in rivers also fed by shallow groundwater exfiltrating into the surface waters. By applying the nonlinear reservoir algorithm as used for baseflow separation from total flow in a river, groundwater flow is separated from daily measured influents to treatment plants in Lower Saxony and Baden-Württemberg, Germany and in the Terkos Lake watershed near Istanbul, Turkey. While waste water flows vary only moderately within a year, separated intruded groundwater flows show recessions and seasonal variations correlated to baseflow in neighbouring rivers. It is possible to conclude that recession characteristics of treatment plant influents allow quantification and prediction of groundwater intrusion into sewer systems.

ACS Style

H. Wittenberg; H. Aksoy. Groundwater intrusion into leaky sewer systems. Water Science and Technology 2010, 62, 92 -98.

AMA Style

H. Wittenberg, H. Aksoy. Groundwater intrusion into leaky sewer systems. Water Science and Technology. 2010; 62 (1):92-98.

Chicago/Turabian Style

H. Wittenberg; H. Aksoy. 2010. "Groundwater intrusion into leaky sewer systems." Water Science and Technology 62, no. 1: 92-98.

Journal article
Published: 15 August 2003 in Hydrological Processes
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ACS Style

Hartmut Wittenberg. Effects of season and man-made changes on baseflow and flow recession: case studies. Hydrological Processes 2003, 17, 2113 -2123.

AMA Style

Hartmut Wittenberg. Effects of season and man-made changes on baseflow and flow recession: case studies. Hydrological Processes. 2003; 17 (11):2113-2123.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Hartmut Wittenberg. 2003. "Effects of season and man-made changes on baseflow and flow recession: case studies." Hydrological Processes 17, no. 11: 2113-2123.

Research article
Published: 15 April 1999 in Hydrological Processes
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Discharge in many rivers is often fed by outflow from a shallow groundwater reservoir. It is becoming clear that the outflow from this aquifer is not linearly proportional to storage as is commonly assumed in many algorithms. Numerical analysis of flow recession curves from about 100 river gauging stations instead reveals a nonlinear relationship between baseflow, Q, and storage, S, for which the equation S=aQb was adopted. Values of the exponent b are found by calibration to be between 0 and 1 but with a high concentration around 0·5, which is in accordance with the findings of other studies and theoretical approaches yielding b=0·5 for unconfined aquifers and relating the coefficient a to catchment properties, primarily area and shape of basin, pore volume and transmissivity. This non‐linear reservoir function is proposed as a more realistic alternative to the linear reservoir function. The relatively fast response of groundwater flow to rainfall is mainly a result of the increase of hydraulic head of the groundwater reservoir accelerating the exfiltration of ‘old’, pre‐event water into the river bed. As fissure and pore volumes communicate hydraulically, it appears physically reasonable to model the system by one non‐linear reservoir for catchments, or parts of them, instead of applying independent parallel linear reservoirs. The non‐linear reservoir algorithms are supported by an analytical derivation. They are extended for the automatic separation of baseflow from a time‐series of daily discharge in rivers and the computation of storage and effective recharge of groundwater in river basins by inverse nonlinear reservoir routing. The time‐series obtained allow the identification and quantification of long‐term changes to the water balance. Relationships between computed groundwater storage and observed groundwater level can also be established. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

ACS Style

Hartmut Wittenberg. Baseflow recession and recharge as nonlinear storage processes. Hydrological Processes 1999, 13, 715 -726.

AMA Style

Hartmut Wittenberg. Baseflow recession and recharge as nonlinear storage processes. Hydrological Processes. 1999; 13 (5):715-726.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Hartmut Wittenberg. 1999. "Baseflow recession and recharge as nonlinear storage processes." Hydrological Processes 13, no. 5: 715-726.