Report Indicates U.S. In Real Danger Of Running Out Of Groundwater
A concerning trend for the nation’s drinking water now seems poised to become a full-blown crisis following the results of new data analysis.
“American groundwater has been severely depleted in recent decades, with 40 percent of more than 85,000 wells hitting all-time lows in the past decade and rainwater failing to replace the losses, according to an analysis by The New York Times,” The Hill reported. “The deficits were found across the country, including in Utah, California and Texas, where the depletion is leading to fissures in the ground and buckling roadways.”
For its report, The New York Times studied water level reports from tens of thousands of locations, interviewed more than 100 experts, and considered millions of monitor site readings. Its conclusions raise existential questions about the future of drinking water supplies for the country.
“Many of the aquifers that supply 90 percent of the nation’s water systems, and which have transformed vast stretches of America into some of the world’s most bountiful farmland, are being severely depleted,” according to The Times. “These declines are threatening irreversible harm to the American economy and society as a whole.”
In addition to highlighting issues in the American West, the report noted that groundwater depletion has led farmers in Kansas to rely completely on rainfall, which is diminishing, and has led water managers in Arkansas to pump twice the amount of supply from its primary aquifer as it’s able to replace.
While dwindling groundwater supplies have been noticed in scattered instances across the country, this new report may serve as a wake-up call for the national scale of the problems. Up until now, it argued, the rules governing groundwater use have not been sufficient to protect dwindling supplies.
“One of the biggest obstacles is that the depletion of this unseen yet essential natural resource is barely regulated,” per The Times. “The federal government plays almost no role, and individual states have implemented a dizzying array of often weak rules. The problem is also relatively unexamined at the national scale. Hydrologists and other researchers typically focus on single aquifers or regional changes.”
The results of this investigation may not be a surprise to many water managers around the country, but they may now have a stronger case for demonstrating that water’s value and the importance of conservation. As supplies continue to run out, that will become more important than ever.
To read more about how water managers wrestle with dwindling groundwater supplies, visit Water Online’s Water Scarcity Solutions Center.