UC Santa Barbara

Groundwater aquifers are key sources of water in arid and semiarid regions. Fossil fuels are commonly used to power water-well pumps. The adverse effects of greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel use have led to the search for alternative clean energy sources to extract groundwater. A key factor in assessing the viability of wind energy use in groundwater extraction is the safe yield of groundwater production that can be derived by using windmills to power water wells. This paper presents and tests simulation and optimization models developed to estimate the safe yield of groundwater production derivable from the joint application of wind energy to water extraction and water storage for irrigation.