Southern Kazakhstan, particularly the Zhambyl Region, is facing increasing groundwater stress due to climate change, degradation of irrigation infrastructure, and unsustainable water use. Despite substantial renewable groundwater reserves (8.33 km³/year), irrigation still relies on ephemeral surface flow. This study delineates priority zones for Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) using a GIS-based Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis framework integrated with the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). Nine hydrogeological criteria were incorporated: shallow aquifer depth, groundwater salinity, precipitation, terrain slope, soil texture, land use/land cover, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), drainage density, and lineament density. Each parameter was normalized to a five-class suitability scale and weighted through expert-informed pairwise comparisons. The MAR suitability map identifies about 19% of the region (27,060 km²) as highly favorable for implementation. Field investigations at eleven groundwater sites in 2024 corroborate model results, providing aquifer depth, quality, and infiltration data. The most suitable areas are concentrated on Quaternary alluvial–proluvial fans near the Kyrgyz Alatau foothills and the Talas-Assa interfluve. Three hydrostratigraphic settings were identified: unconfined alluvial aquifers, Neogene–Quaternary unconsolidated sediments, and fractured Carboniferous carbonates. Recommended MAR methods include infiltration galleries, check dams, and injection wells. The proposed approach, validated through consistency analysis (Consistency Ratio ≤ 0.1), demonstrates the applicability of integrated geospatial and field methods for site-specific MAR planning. Strategic MAR deployment could restore productivity to 37,500 ha of degraded irrigated lands and improve groundwater resilience. These findings provide a practical framework for policymakers and water management authorities to optimize groundwater use and enhance agricultural sustainability under changing climatic conditions.

Сегодняшняя глобальная стратегия по повышению надежности систем хозяйственно-питьевого водоснабжения определяется нацеленностью на максимальное использование подземных вод для обеспечения населения питьевой водой. В большинстве случаев информация о наличии, объеме и качестве подземных вод играет решающую роль при принятии решений об эффективности освоения определенной территории, а также об улучшении и расширении физической среды и объектов, необходимых для поддержания экономической деятельности и обеспечения жизненных потребностей людей данного региона. Поэтому решающим фактором в изучении гидрогеологических условий региона являются знания о распространении подземных вод, величине их ресурсов, качестве и особенностях их формирования. Выполнена оценка ресурсного потенциала подземных вод Западного Казахстана для обеспечения устойчивого питьевого водоснабжения населения. При оценке характеристик пресных подземных вод применены гидрогеологические, гидрогеохимические, геоинформационно-аналитические, статистические и лабораторные методы исследований (в том числе хроматографический, спектрофотометрический, атомноабсорбционный и др.). Оценка ресурсного потенциала пресных подземных вод и перспектив их использования для водоснабжения городов и населенных пунктов позволит выявить высоко-, средне- и малообеспеченные подземными водами территории, а это, в свою очередь, даст возможность найти новые источники для покрытия нужд хозяйственно-питьевого водоснабжения, что будет способствовать устойчивому социально-экономическому развитию Западного Казахстана.

Managed aquifer recharge (MAR) is increasingly being realized as an important approach to improve water security in arid and semi-arid environments where there is a low amount of surface water and high climatic variability. This paper introduces a unified approach to the process of locating appropriate MAR locations and estimating recharge potential in Central Kazakhstan through a multi-criteria analysis using geographic information systems (GIS) and hydrogeological field exploration, water balance modelling. Remote sensing datasets and evapotranspiration (ET) analyses were conducted for the 2014–2024 period, while field investigations, infiltration tests, and hydrochemical sampling were performed during the 2025 field campaign. The suitability testing was preliminarily performed in the Google Earth Engine (GEE; Google LLC, Mountain View, CA, USA) environment as a weighted overlay test with the combination of terrain, vegetation, hydrological, and land cover parameters. According to the suitability map obtained and patterns of activity in agricultural activities, eleven candidate sites were identified, out of which eight were found to be suitable after hydrochemical analysis. The Nesterov and Boldyrev techniques of field-based infiltration tests produced a range of 0.05 to 1.42 m/day of hydraulic conductivity. Water balance analysis shows that the total amount of water that could potentially be added to groundwater recharge is about 40.2 million m³/year and that the effective amount of water could be recharged is about 11.0 million m³/year, which is limited by the infiltration processes. This means that about 27 percent of the available water is added into ground water recharge, which is a significant boost to the original estimates. The assessment of the storage capacity of the aquifers indicates that at all locations, the pore space is much greater than the recharge volumes that have been calculated and, therefore, storage is not a limiting factor in the implementation of MAR. It is estimated that the potential MAR rates range between 174 and 5282 m³/day depending on local hydrogeological conditions. The suggested method offers a powerful and generalizable site selection and measurement framework of MAR in arid areas with limited data. The findings highlight the significance of combining remote sensing, field measurements, and process-based modeling to aid sustainable groundwater management and climate adaptation strategies.

The increasing water shortage caused by climate change, rising water consumption, and uneven distribution of surface runoff necessitates the implementation of effective groundwater management methods in arid regions. For Central Kazakhstan, characterized by a sharply continental climate, a limited river network, and high seasonal runoff variability, Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) technologies are one of the most promising approaches. The objective is to substantiate standard MAR technological schemes considering the region’s physiographic, hydrogeological, and hydrological conditions. A regional zoning assessment was conducted based on a set of criteria, resulting in the identification of four groups of areas: areas suitable for the development of large, medium, and small groundwater reservoirs, as well as areas considered unsuitable for MAR implementation. River valleys, buried valleys, and carbonate structures were identified as the most promising settings for MAR. It was established that up to 80–90 % of the annual river runoff occurs during the spring period, providing a substantial seasonal water resource for aquifer recharge. Infiltration basins were identified as the primary technology for shallow unconfined aquifers, while infiltration wells and recharge wells were recommended for deeper and fractured-karst aquifers. The MAR technological schemes developed in the study, including both open and closed systems, allow engineering solutions to be adapted to specific natural conditions. The use of infiltration basins, regulated water-intake structures, and recharge wells can not only increase groundwater reserves but also provide effective control over groundwater levels and flow regimes.

The most acute problem of pasture watering is bound to one of the arid regions of the Republic that is Central Kazakhstan. Under the current conditions, groundwater plays a significant role in providing high-quality drinking water resources. Conservation of surface flow in underground aquifers in arid and semi-arid areas of Central Kazakhstan is of great importance. For the first time in the practice of watering pastures in the foothills and hilly areas of Kazakhstan, the process of creating underground reservoirs based on low-power flows of underground fissure-groundwater is studied. The result of this study is a substantiated and developed concept scheme for creating watering structures on pastures based on artificial groundwater recharge (creation of mainly small underground reservoirs) in the hilly areas of Central Kazakhstan (Sary-Arka pasture).

Managed aquifer recharge (MAR) is increasingly being realized as an important approach to improve water security in arid and semi-arid environments where there is a low amount of surface water and high climatic variability. This paper introduces a unified approach to the process of locating appropriate MAR locations and estimating recharge potential in Central Kazakhstan through the multi-criteria analysis using GIS and hydrogeological field exploration, water balance modelling. The suitability testing was preliminarily performed in the Google Earth Engine environment as a weighted overlay test with the combination of terrain, vegetation, hydrological, and land cover parameters. According to the suitability map obtained and patterns of activity in agricultural activities, eleven candidate sites were identified out of which eight were found to be suitable after hydrochemical analysis. The Nesterov and Boldyrev techniques of field-based infiltration tests, produced a range of 0.05 to 1.42 m/day of hydraulic conductivity. Water balance analysis shows that the total amount of water that could be recharged into the suitable sites is about 40.2 million m³/year and that the effective amount of water could be recharged is about 11.0 million m³/year, which is limited by the infiltration processes. This means that about 27 percent of the available water is added into ground water recharge which is a significant boost to the original estimates. The assessment of the storage capacity of the aquifers indicates that at all locations, the pore space is much greater than the recharge volumes that have been calculated and, therefore, storage is not a limiting factor in the implementation of MAR. It is estimated that there are recharge rates of between 174 and 5,282 m³/day, with a high degree of spatial variability which is caused by local hydrogeological circumstances. The suggested method offers a powerful and generalizable site selection and measurement framework of MAR in arid areas with limited data. The findings highlight the significance of combining remote sensing, field measurements, and process-based modeling to aid sustainable groundwater management and climate adaptation strategies.