Drainage and environmental impact
If groundwater needs to be extracted, SOCOTEC Nederland can provide drainage advice, whereby we use field, laboratory, and archive research to create a geohydrological schematization of the subsoil and determine the groundwater regime at a location.
We then use a model calculation (Modflow or MicroFEM) to calculate the extraction flow rate that is expected to be extracted during the realization of the project, for example a construction pit, the total water volume involved in the dewatering period, and the scope of the area affected by the dewatering.
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SOCOTEC Nederland assesses the extraction rates and water reserves against the regulations of the competent authority that are relevant to the location in order to determine whether your drainage system requires a permit. If a permit is required, we can submit the application for a water permit to the competent authority on your behalf.
As a result of (geohydrological) activities, such as lowering the groundwater level for drainage, deformation of or in the subsoil may occur. The aforementioned aspect causes a certain degree of impact on the environment, such as impact on above-ground and underground infrastructure, archaeological finds in the subsoil, (foundations of) buildings or flood defenses. Depending on the extent of the impact, damage may occur to the aforementioned objects. In addition, a (temporary) lowering of the groundwater level can also have an impact on nature and agriculture, cause the spread/displacement of existing contaminants in the subsurface, and cause the displacement of any existing fresh/salt interface.
SOCOTEC Nederland can advise you on these environmental influences. This may include:
- Settlement analyses for groundwater level reductions and the impact of groundwater level reduction on buildings and infrastructure,
- Stream path analysis
For these analyses, we use geotechnical soil investigations and geotechnical laboratory tests that we can carry out ourselves. We use our own software for the calculations, the D series from Deltares (D-Settlement) and (Modflow or MicroFEM).
A water permit is only granted if the negative impact on the environment is sufficiently small. In the event of a negative impact on the environment (e.g., the displacement of contamination), SOCOTEC Nederland will determine the best solution to mitigate the impact in consultation with you and the competent authority. Only when it is clear that the impact on the environment will be sufficiently limited do we finalize the report and submit the water permit to the competent authority.
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