A comparative analysis of groundwater recharge estimates from three major methods: An analysis of subsurface recharge in the Nabogo sub-catchment of the White Volta Basin, Northern Ghana

Groundwater recharge in the Nabogo sub-catchment of the White Volta Basin is assessed using three main methods: the water table fluctuations method, baseflow recession method, and chloride mass balance approach. The objective is to quantify the relative proportions of direct vertical infiltration and percolation of rainwater in the area and subsurface flows in determining the total groundwater recharge in the basin. Groundwater resources development for commercial irrigation activities is an essential aspect of the livelihoods of communities living within the catchments of the Volta Basin. A comprehensive assessment of the recharge component of groundwater budgets in the basin is critical towards determining optimal abstraction rates in order to ensure resource sustainability and ecological integrity. This will form the basis for quantifying abstraction rates that are permissible to support large scale irrigation activities in the basin. The presence and thickness of the clay layer in the unsaturated zone serves to limit vertical infiltration of rainwater, and thus reduce vertical groundwater recharge in the area. In this study, the chloride mass balance technique, supported by the analysis of stable isotope signatures, has been used to estimate the vertical groundwater recharge and its spatial pattern of distribution in the area. The water table fluctuations technique and base flow recession method are then used to estimate total groundwater recharge in the basin. It is then possible to quantify the relative contributions of subsurface flows in the groundwater recharge in the basin. Temporal variations in groundwater recharge in the area are examined from time series of estimates from the baseflow recession technique. The results will assist in assessing the short term impacts of rainfall variability on groundwater budgets in the area.