Application of numerical modelling to predict the groundwater heads in coastal aquifers of Sultanate of Oman

The Sultanate of Oman has a total size of309,500 km2 and is located in the south-eastern corner of the Arabian Peninsula. The coastal plain includes the most important agricultural area, al-batinah plain, in the north, and Salalah plain in the south. The climate is arid and semi-arid, with considerable humidity around the shore. The average annual rainfall ranges from 20 mm in the interior to 300 mm towards the shore. The three primary issues for Oman's water sector
are "prolonged droughts resulting in excessive water extraction from aquifers, intrusion of saline water into coastal aquifers, and falaj and well depletion due to excessive abstraction for home and agricultural use (Prerana & Sana, 2015). From 1984 to 2005, the Ministry of Regional Municipality and Water Resources surveyed and monitored an area of approximately 394 km2 along the shore. The results show a loss of 2. 714 ha of irrigated land as well as seawater intrusion 12 kilometers inland at Wadi Al Taww in Barka area (Al Barwani and Helmi 2006).
There is a need to understand the seawater intrusion process and factors governing this process considering Oman. In the present study, a numerical model is utilized to predict the groundwater levels in Wadi Al-Jizi coastal aquifer in response to various water abstraction scenarios. This study will help the decision-makers in better management of coastal aquifers to avoid seawater
intrusion.