The increased demands on water resources in northern China have had a significant impact on groundwater systems in the last three to four decades, including reductions in groundwater recharge capacity and overall water quality. These changes limit the potential for groundwater uses in this area. This paper discusses the issues surrounding groundwater system use in the eight basins of northern China as water resources have been developed. The results demonstrate that the recharge zone has shifted from the piedmont to the agricultural area, and that the total recharge rate in the basins tended to decrease. This decrease in arid inland basins was mainly caused by both the excessive use of water in the watershed area and irrigated channel anti-seepage. In semi-arid basins, the decrease observed in the groundwater recharge rate is related to an overall reduction in precipitation and increasing river impoundment. In addition, intensive exploitation of groundwater resources has resulted in disturbances to the groundwater flow regime in arid and semi-arid inland basins. Arid inland basins demonstrated fast falling groundwater levels in the piedmont plains resulting in declines of spring flow rates and movement of spring sites to lower locations. In the semi-arid basins, i.e. the North China Plain and the Song-nen Plain, groundwater depression cones developed and intersected regional groundwater flow. The semi-arid basins of the North China Plain and the Song-nen Plain have experienced significant hydrochemical evolution of groundwater characterized by changing water type including increase of TDS and pollutants.

This paper targets its research at the exploitation–reinjection well of geothermal fluid of one geothermal heating project in Tianjin, China, examines such factors as ground temperature, CO2 partial pressure and stratum lithology, and simulates the changes in the main component contents of geothermal fluids mixed at different proportions in the exploitation and reinjection well. The research findings show that the mixed fluids are increasingly similar in nature to the reinjected water as the reinjection process goes on. It’s suggested that the manual method should be used to ensure the reinjected water has the similar mineralization as the exploited ground water in the process of reinjection and some acceptable adjustments should be made according to the specific component and water temperature. The study on water-rock balance calculation shows that PHREEQC can simulate the complicated chemical reactions related to water when the transfer of solute happens, so the necessary technological supports are given for the reasonable development and protection of geothermal resources.