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Editorial Board Members’ Collection Series: “Managed Aquifer Recharge and Management”

A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Hydrogeology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 October 2026 | Viewed by 1777

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Bioengineering, Civil Engineering, and Environmental Engineering, U.A. Whitaker College of Engineering, 10501 FGCU Boulevard, Fort Myers, FL 33965-6565, USA
Interests: natural recharge in alluvial aquifers (wadis); artificial recharge using treated wastewater; desalination in arid regions (using aquifer intake systems to reduce energy consumption); economics of water supply development in arid regions; capturing and storing flood waters for later use; hydrogeology of dune systems; aquifer storage and recovery’ groundwater restoration
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Guest Editor
Department of Materials, Environmental Sciences and Urban Planning, Polytechnic University of Marche, 60131 Ancona, Italy
Interests: groundwater flow modelling; reactive transport modelling; saline aquifers; unsaturated zone transport; groundwater quality
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

A key water management strategy during climate change is to store excess water during wet periods for later use during dry periods using various methods and is termed Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR). MAR can also be used to manage peak demands during utility operation by storing treated water during periods when excess water is available to recover the treated water during peak demand periods. There are also many other MAR applications, such as management of saltwater intrusion and saline coastal aquifers, reuse of highly treated wastewater to manage land subsidence, and many others. MAR can also be applied to the restoration of depleted aquifers (e.g., unconfined systems) and the long-tern freshening of aquifers containing brackish water. The timeframe of MAR projects may vary from annual use to decades where excess water can be injected into saline-water aquifers to freshen them.

Papers can be submitted on the following subject: aquifer storage and recovery of treated water, aquifer storage and recovery of partially treated surface water, aquifer storage and recovery of highly treated wastewater, managed aquifer recharge to freshen saline water aquifers, aquifer injection of treated wastewater to prevent land subsidence, injection of freshwater to manage saltwater intrusion using wells, use of infiltration basins to increase aquifer recharge rates, and other combinations of managed aquifer recharge.

Prof. Dr. Thomas Missimer
Prof. Dr. Nicolò Colombani
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • managed aquifer recharge
  • aquifer storage and recovery
  • artificial aquifer recharge
  • salinity barriers
  • water reuse

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 3426 KB  
Article
Reclaimed Water ASR in a Sand-and-Gravel Aquifer: Destin Water Users System (Florida, USA)
by Robert Maliva, Monica Wallis and Logan Law
Water 2026, 18(6), 722; https://doi.org/10.3390/w18060722 - 19 Mar 2026
Viewed by 510
Abstract
The beneficial reuse of reclaimed water is a legislative objective of the State of Florida and a critical element in the optimization of water management in areas facing scarcity of freshwater. Aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) of reclaimed allows for the balancing of [...] Read more.
The beneficial reuse of reclaimed water is a legislative objective of the State of Florida and a critical element in the optimization of water management in areas facing scarcity of freshwater. Aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) of reclaimed allows for the balancing of variations in seasonal and longer-term supply and demand. Destin Water Users, Inc. (DWU), which serves a barrier island community in the Florida panhandle, implemented a groundbreaking ASR system that stores reclaimed water in a shallow sand-and-gravel aquifer. Institutional controls were used to provide additional assurance that public health is protected, and natural contamination attenuation processes are taken advantage of to address arsenic leaching into stored water and disinfection byproducts (trihalomethanes) removal. The DWU ASR system eliminated the need for more expensive and environmentally impactful options for the disposal of excess of reclaimed water and increases the reliability of the reuse system, having the benefit of reserving higher-quality fresh groundwater resources for potable use. Full article
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24 pages, 7359 KB  
Article
Application of GIS-MCDA Methodology for Managed Aquifer Recharge Suitability Mapping in Poland
by Sławomir Sitek, Krzysztof Janik, Agnieszka Piechota, Hanna Rubin and Andrzej J. Witkowski
Water 2026, 18(2), 219; https://doi.org/10.3390/w18020219 - 14 Jan 2026
Viewed by 838
Abstract
Climate change and increasing groundwater demand underscore the urgency of sustainable water resource planning. Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) represents a promising strategy, yet its implementation depends on accurately identifying locations suited for specific MAR techniques. This study presents a GIS-based methodology developed under [...] Read more.
Climate change and increasing groundwater demand underscore the urgency of sustainable water resource planning. Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) represents a promising strategy, yet its implementation depends on accurately identifying locations suited for specific MAR techniques. This study presents a GIS-based methodology developed under the DEEPWATER-CE project for identifying suitable locations for six MAR techniques in Central Europe. The methodology integrates environmental, hydrological, and land use criteria in a two-stage approach: an initial screening to delineate potentially suitable areas, followed by a detailed classification of those areas into high, moderate, and low suitability categories. The approach was tested in the Polish part of the Dunajec River catchment (4835 km2), revealing that river or lake bank filtration, infiltration ditches, and underground dams are the most viable MAR options, suitable for 12.6%, 13%, and 15.6% of the catchment area, respectively. A focused analysis within the Tarnów agglomeration, identified as highly vulnerable to climate change and with intensive groundwater use, demonstrated that 83–87% of the area is moderately suitable for infiltration ditches and riverbank filtration techniques. This decision-support tool can inform water managers and planners regarding the best locations for implementing MAR to enhance aquifer resilience, ensure water availability, and mitigate the impacts of extreme weather events. The methodology is transferable to other regions facing similar hydroclimatic challenges. Full article
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