Groundwater Drought in the Nitra River Basin - Identification and Classification

Drought as a natural phenomenon becomes more often the subject of the research. It is because of the increasing frequency of extreme climatic events also in mild climate conditions. Groundwater drought indices could be derived for different groundwater parameters, among them for base flow, groundwater head stage, spring yield, or groundwater recharge. Base flow drought assessment methods were proposed in the paper. Base flow values were separated from the discharge hydrograms using the new HydroOffice 2010 program package, lately developed by Gregor. The base flow drought severity index was applied, calculated as the value of the base flow drought deficit volume divided by the drought duration. After that, the standardized base flow drought severity index was proposed as the ratio of the base flow drought index and the average long-term annual base flow. Proposed methods were applied in the Nitra River basin. Base flow drought occurrence was characterized also from the seasonality point of view.