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Hydrology
 The movement of water is called hydrology. 

 Water moves around in a "cycle". 

 In this cycle it can take the form of solid (ice), liquid, gas
(water vapor).

 Water falling to the ground from the atmosphere is

precipitation. 

The budget for precipitation is

 9x1013 m3/yr falls onto land,
 37x1013 m3/yr falls into the ocean
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Hydrology
 A large amount of H2O is taken back into the atmosphere by
evaporation and plant transpiration. 

 These two processes are usually grouped together as evapo-

transpiration.

The budget

 40x1013 m3/yr   from the ocean,

 6x1013 m3/yr from the soil and surface water

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Hydrology
 For the precipitation that falls onto the ground, some goes
into runoff (rivers and surface water), another soaks into the
ground by a process of infiltration. 

 Water that sinks into the ground is called groundwater.

 The drainage basin of a river is the entire area from which a

stream and its tributaries receive their water.

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Hydrology - Stream Dynamics
The flow of water in a stream is classified as being

1. laminar (usually low velocity, mature streams) and

2. turbulent (usually high velocity, young streams). 

 Discharge is an important quantity when describing a stream's

flow.

 Discharge has units of vol /unit of time (m 3/min)

 It is a measure of H2O volume that passes a particular cross-

sectional area in time t.

 Discharge = cross-sectional area x velocity

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Hydrology - Stream Dynamics
 The measure of discharge as a function of time is called a
hydrograph

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Natural Hazards & Environmental Management

 It is quite important to ascertain the threat of flooding in a

proposed construction area. 

How can this be done? 

i. Examine the general topology - Does it look like a potential

floodplain of a river?

ii. Talk to the "indigenous" people - Ask them if a particular area

floods and how often.

iii. Examine historical records of flood levels and the number of

occurrences.
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Natural Hazards & Environmental Management

iv.  Sometimes flood waters will leave marks on buildings and

trees. 

This will indicate some of the highest flood levels.

v.  The soil may contain evidence of sedimentation from a

floodplain.

Potential for flooding is a probability. 

Consult higher authorities – geomorphologists, environmental

engineers, geotechnicians and other relevant experts on the
subject
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Natural Hazards & Environmental Management

Examples – Urbanization

 It covers pavement, residential housing, etc. of a rivers

drainage basin will cause the peak discharge to increase & the
time lag to decrease. 

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Natural Hazards & Environmental Management

 Less infiltration and more runoff that moves into the river
more quickly.

 This may enhance flooding

Dam construction

 It allows the downstream discharge to be regulated. 

 This usually reduces the peak discharge and increases the

time lag.

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Natural Hazards & Environmental Management

Modifying river drainage pattern

 Constricting a rivers floodplain with flood walls, dikes,

and/or levees causes the peak discharge to increase and time
lag to decrease in spots downstream. 

 When a river is allowed to spread out into the surrounding

floodplains, the water slows down and it "stretches" out with
respect to a downstream hydrograph.

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Natural Hazards & Environmental Management

 General rule - artificial structures placed into a river or a

river's floodplain will usually change the dynamics of that
river with regards to flooding.

The "ultimate floodplain management?": e.g. China

 "After ordering 10,000s residents to abandon their homes,

engineers have to explode the dynamited levees along a
stretch of the swollen Yangtze (river in China) in order to
ease floodwaters menacing cities in central China

 The water was diverted to farmlands

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Natural Hazards & Environmental Management

Erosion and Deposition

 Most stream erosion occurs by lifting

loose particles and by abrasion. 

 The stronger the water current - the

more the erosion.

When a river overflows its banks, it will drop much of its load
because of the water slowing down. 

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Natural Hazards & Environmental Management

This is why you'll find a lot of silt & sand

within floodplains & curved corners of
meandering river

Areas for residential housing can be

judged by assessing geomorphological
process of the river basin

The stream meanders and erodes the banks on the outside of the
river bends where the water is moving fast.  On the inside turns the
water is moving more slowly creating deposition sand bars. 
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Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Groundwater

 Groundwater is 66 x the amount of water in streams and

freshwater lakes. 

 Precipitation that infiltrates into the ground is called

groundwater.

 The zone of aeration is the region of soil closest to the surface. 

 It contains some moisture but is not 100% saturated with water. 

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Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

 A permeable material that actually carries underground water is

called an aquifer.
Low permeable material (i.e. solid rock) is called aquicludes.
When the water table intersects the surface, a spring, swamp,
river, and/or lake may appear.

 How fast water travels through an aquifer follows Darcy's Law:

• k = permeability constant
• h/l = hydraulic gradient, slope of the
water table
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 Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Determine flow direction from well data using 3 wells:

1. Determine elevations of wells – surface heights.

Well #1 4252’
Well #2 4315’
N

Well #3 4397’
 Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Determine flow direction from well data using 3 wells:

1. Determine elevations of wells – surface heights.

Well #1 4252’
Well #2 4315’
N

Well #3 4397’
 Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Determine flow direction from well data:

2. Measure depth to water Table.

Well #1 4252’
Well #2 4315’
N
Depth to WT = 120’
Depth to WT = 78’

Well #3 4397’
Depth to WT = 95’
 Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Determine flow direction from well data:

3. Calculate the elevation to the water Table.

Well #1 4252’
4237 Well #2 4315’
N
Depth to WT = 120’
Depth to WT = 78’

4132

Well #3 4397’
Depth to WT = 95
4302
 Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Determine flow direction from well data:

3. Calculate the elevation to the water Table.

Well #1 4252’
Well #2 4315’
N
Depth to WT = 120’
WT elev = 4132’ Depth to WT = 78’
WT elev = 4237

Well #3 4397’
Depth to WT = 95
WT elev = 4302’
 Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Determine flow direction from well data:

4. Determine direction of flow of water from 3 wells.

Well #1 4252’
4237 Well #2 4315’
N
Depth to WT = 120’
WT elev = 4132’ Depth to WT = 78’
WT elev = 4237

4132

Water table geomorphology Well #3 4397’

Depth to WT = 95
established – how does it flow?
4302 WT elev = 4302’
 Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Determine flow direction from well data:

4 Determine direction of flow of water.

Well #1 4252’
Well #2 4315’
N
Depth to WT = 120’
WT elev = 4132’ Depth to WT = 78’
WT elev = 4237

Well #3 4397’
Depth to WT = 95
WT elev = 4302’
 Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Determine flow direction from well data:

5. Interpolate contour intervals &Insert contour points on each

flow line 4237 N

4132

4302
 Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Determine flow direction from well data:

6. Assign heights on each point of flow line

N
4220
4200 4240
4180

4260
4140
4160
4180
4200 4280
4220
4240
4260 4300
4280
 Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Determine flow direction from well data:

7. Connect contours of equal elevation

N
4220
4200 4240
4180

4260
4140
4160
4180
4200 4280
4220
4240
4260 4300
4280
 Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Determine flow direction from well data:

8. Draw flow lines perpendicular to contours

N
4220
4200 4240
4180

4260
4140
4160
4180
4200 4280
4220
4240
4260 4300
4280
 Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Region for further exploration is determined by the flow direction of

the arrows i.e. downstream, so long the morphology do not
change N
 Geomorphology & groundwater exploration

Movement of groundwater depends on

i.rock type &

ii.sediment properties i.e. hydraulic conductivity (rate of water

movement, m/day), and includes

i. Porosity,

ii. permeability,

iii. specific yield and

iv. specific retention

 WELL SORTED POORLY SORTED WELL SORTED
Coarse (sand-gravel) Coarse - Fine Fine (silt-clay)

Permeability and Hydraulic Conductivity

High Low
Sorting of material affects groundwater movement.
Poorly sorted (well graded) material is less porous than well-sorted
material.
 Groundwater Movement
Porosity and hydraulic conductivity of some materials

Hydraulic
Porosity Conductivity
Material (%) (m/day)
Unconsolidated
Clay 45 0.041
Sand 35 32.8
Gravel 25 205.0
Gravel and sand 20 82.0
Rock
Sandstone 15 28.7
Dense limestone or shale 5 0.041
Granite 1 0.0041

S. Hughes, 2003
 Groundwater Flow Nets

Water table contours in drainage basins roughly follow the surface

topography, but depend greatly on the properties of rock and soil
that compose the aquifer:

• Variations in mineralogy and texture

• Fractures and cavities

• Impervious layers

• Climate
 Groundwater Flow Nets
Drainage basins are often used to collect clean, unpolluted water for
domestic consumption.

DRAINAGE Flow lines

BASIN

WT N
contours
 Groundwater Flow Net
414 412
410
N
Water Flow Lines
408

Water Table Contours

406

404

Well
402

400
 Geomorphology & Hydrology
 By mapping local maxima (divides) in topography, natural terrains
can always be divided, at all scales (from meters to 1000 km), into
catchment areas, each exited by one principal drainage, into
which surface runoff is channeled

 This is not a necessary property of any surface…it is the result of

processes that act to shape the landscape

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Geomorphology & Hydrology

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