Deep groundwater resources and general assessment of Iran, especially in Sistan and Baluchestan province in terms of the existence of deep groundwater resources

In addition to managing consumption, investing in new water resources that are unexplored underground can be effective in supplying part of the country's water needs. In this study, first, with extensive study of global experiences, properties, limitations and benefits of using deep groundwater resources are presented and in the next step, Sistan and Baluchestan province was evaluated from the point of view of deep groundwater resources potential. For this purpose, geological and hydrogeological characteristics such as aquifer formation conditions, hydrostratigraphy, aquifer geometry, groundwater velocity, residence time, renewability, age, origin, porosity, hydraulic conductivity, aquifer storage volume, and qualitative characteristics of some of the world's largest aquifers, including Great Artesian Basin in Australia and the Nubian Aquifer system in North Africa were analyzed. Also, some important factors such as economics, limitations and advantages of exploitation, as well as the environmental consequences of exploitation of deep groundwater resources in different countries were evaluated. The results of studies on the geological conditions and hydrogeology of the world's largest aquifers and its comparison with the geological conditions of Iran show that in general the Iranian plateau has a complex geology consisting of several geological blocks. Therefore, it makes more sense to focus studies on the identification and exploration of water and deep aquifers on small scales. Comparison of the results obtained from the overview of geological and hydrogeological characteristics of Sistan and Baluchestan province indicates the possibility of aquifer formation on a small scale in the thick alluvial layers of Hamoon-Helmand, Hamoon-Mashkil, Hamoon-Jazmourian and hard rocks of the Kavir-e Lut basins.