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ASSESSMENT OF GROUNDWATER LEVEL TO IMPROVE WATER RESOURCE IN KABUL CITY, AFGHANISTAN

Shir Mohammad Omid, Jun-ichiro Goirgos Tsutsumi, Ryu Nakamatsu, Mohammad Hassan Hasanyar


Reports have long confirmed that groundwater fluctuation table is lowered by 8 to 25 meters in central Kabul and Paghman basins, compared with 1960. In Kabul, shallow wells were re-excavated or dried out by ground water deducted during 1998-2002 and in the years 2006-2016, the reports show that large number of the hand pomp wells, which were excavated during 1998 to 2013, are dried out. Ground water is the main sources of water in Kabul, which is basically used for daily necessities. Currently, the number of wells is increasing day by day because it is less costly and an easy way to extract water. In places where people living are on agricultural lifestyle, wells are widely used during dry seasons for irrigation, yet no clear data is available on the percentage and terms of usage. In the past, the depth of groundwater table varied from 2-10m, but due to strong extraction, increased population in Kabul, and climate change the water level have been deepening further. Since 2017, water table of Kabul aquifer lays in much greater depth. Water table in the main areas of Kabul city, in Shahr-e-Naw for instance, was 2-3 m in 1965 while the depth increased to 9.5 m in 2005 (BGR-2005, others) and now (2017) it’s near 25 m. This study suggests construction and implementation of mud dam as an important measure for water storage and groundwater recharge. The method is the most efficient in addressing the problem of drinking water in Kabul city and region.