Rainwater and Groundwater (Workflow :1)

Aquifers are the geological formations that can store water as well as allow the flow of significant amount of water through their pores under ordinary field conditions. Aquifers bounded by two impermeable formations on its top and bottom are called confined aquifer. The layer above the confined layer from the surface of earth which holds rainwater is called an unconfined aquifer. The latter has the inherent advantage over confined aquifers in that they serve as a sub-surface reservoir for large quantities of water due to their storage being linked to porosity unlike the elastic properties of the water and solid matrix, as in case of the confined aquifer.

Also, the vast surface area of the unconfined aquifer above the water table becomes available to receive surface applied recharges against relatively small openings/ exposures in confined acquifiers nearer the ground surface or leaky portion therein. Confined aquifer thus recharge very slowly taking decades to even centuries to recharge.