Today’s generation is paying for the lack of knowledge and careless attitude that our forefathers had to nature and this is manifesting in global warming, droughts, water shortages, water scarcity, floods, and many other natural occurrences that are threatening humanity.
While most first-world countries think that they are quite safe and that it is only the undeveloped or developing countries that have to worry about water shortages, nothing could be further from the truth.
What is a Groundwater Drought?
One of our sources of drinking water is groundwater, which can provide water even during periods of lower than normal rainfall when surface water has long dried up. Unfortunately, if there is reduced rainfall over a long period, this source too can fail to deliver.
A groundwater drought is when there is less than the average availability of groundwater for a sustained and extended period of time. They are marked by lower than average water levels in boreholes, aquifers and wells as well as by reduced flows to groundwater-fed rivers and wetlands.
Groundwater droughts in developing countries, where communities are particularly reliant on groundwater, can result in job losses, illness and even death. In the UK, aquifers are usually replenished during the winter months, but if there is reduced rainfall over one or more successive winters, groundwater droughts could occur; they could also be exacerbated by high demands for water during extremely hot or particularly dry summers.
Groundwater in the UK, due to its relatively slow response to changes in rainfall, becomes a critical national resource in times of surface water drought. Groundwater supports ecologically vital flows in many of the UK’s rivers during droughts as well as supplying water for agricultural, industrial and domestic use.
The UK has experienced several groundwater droughts over the past few decades, so the British Geological Survey (BGS) and the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) do ongoing assessments and surveys to better understand how future groundwater droughts may develop. They produce monthly assessments of the groundwater resources in the UK and advise government departments and environmental regulators on groundwater resources during episodes of drought.
Living-Water sells watercoolers to businesses in London. Water cooler rental from Living-Water.
