ABSTRACT
This chapter explains hydraulic and hydrogeologic parameters needed to characterise groundwater flow in a karst aquifer, as well as the methods for their determination. The parameters include: 1) porosity, effective porosity and storage capacity, 2) hydraulic head, 3) transmissivity and hydraulic conductivity, 4) groundwater velocity, and 5) groundwater flow rate. Field test methods include hydraulic borehole tests such as packer and slug tests, and aquifer pumping tests. In a true karst aquifer however, where all characteristic porosity types are developed, an accurate or just an approximate determination of all key ground-water flow parameters is the most difficult task. In addition, virtually all hydraulic test methods commonly applied in karst aquifers have been initially developed for intergranular and fractured porous media, so that the interpretation of their results in karst aquifers, where conduit and channel flows often play the most important role, is not straight-forward and requires considerable practical knowledge.
