The stream network in the Netherlands as a groundwater discharge phenomenon

Abstract

The stream network in the higher, Pleistocene part of The Netherlands is genetically coupled with groundwater discharge systems of various extents. Streams of a given order can be described as the outcrops of groundwater flow systems of a corresponding order. The drainage system is controlled by the precipitation surplus (climate), by the resistance of the subsurface to groundwater flow (geology) and by the previous relief and the depth of incision (topography). This concept is defined as the Groundwater Outcrop-Erosion Model (GOEM). On the basis of this model stream nets can be synthesized theoretically. In this context use is made of data on geology, geomorphology and climate applying groundwater flow formulae and Horton's law of stream order versus stream density. Comparison of the actual and "synthetic" stream-net characteristics shows reasonable agreement.