Finite element model of swelling/shrinkage and hydrology in a peatland south of Venice

Subsurface hydrology of soils characterized by a high organic matter content is often described by the classical Richards equation governing flow in variably saturated porous media with a mineral soil ''equivalent'' parametrization of the retention curves. This work deals with the application of an ''adjusted'' Richards-based model where the storage term is modified to take into consideration the reversible soil volume changes that take place during drying-wetting cycles. This phenomenon is belived to have a significant impact on the peatland hydrological regime that cannot be neglected. The modelling approach is validated with an experimental data set collected in a drained cultivated peatland located south of the Venice Lagoon