Accelerated Decline of Groundwater Levels in the 21st century, globally
- 1ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- 2Bren School of Environmental Science & Management, University of California, Santa Barbara, USA
- 3Environmental Studies Program, University of California, Santa Barbara, USA
- 4Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, USA
- 5Institute for Risk and Disaster Reduction, University College London, London, UK
- 6Department of Geography, University College London, London, UK
- 7Department of Nuclear Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Groundwater is a vital resource for direct consumption as well as for agriculture, particularly in arid and semiarid climates where groundwater is often a primary water source for irrigation. Here, we analyze more than 170,000 groundwater level timeseries across the globe. We show that groundwater level declines accelerated over the past four decades. Accelerated declines are especially widespread in dry regions with extensive cropland. However, our study also reveals that there are areas where interventions have led to groundwater levels to recover. This result provides a ray of hope for sustainable management of vital groundwater resources in the decades to come.
How to cite: Seybold, H., Jasechko, S., Perrone, D., Fan Reinfelder, Y., Taylor, R., Shamsudduha, M., Fallatah, O., and Kirchner, J.: Accelerated Decline of Groundwater Levels in the 21st century, globally, EGU General Assembly 2024, Vienna, Austria, 14–19 Apr 2024, EGU24-12170, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu24-12170, 2024.
