A century of groundwater accumulation in Pakistan and northwest India

MacAllister, Donald John; Krishan, Gopal; Basharat, Muhammad; Cuba, Daniela; MacDonald, Alan

doi:10.1038/s41561-022-00926-1

Cited by 31 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…Urbanization can increase local precipitation, but mostly reduces soil permeability and increases runoff intensity. While increased precipitation intensities have enhanced groundwater recharge, most notably in tropical regions (medium confidence), there is high confidence that groundwater depletion has occurred since at least the start of the 21st century, as a consequence of groundwater withdrawals for irrigation in agricultural areas in drylands [28].…”

Section: Increasing Water Cycle Perturbations Due To Human Activitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Water remains a blind spot in climate change policies

Douville

Allan²,

Arias³

et al. 2022

PLOS Water

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For the first time in the latest Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), water has been the focus of dedicated chapters in both Working Group 1 (Chapter 8) and 2 (Chapter 4). Nevertheless, we argue here that water has not yet received the full attention it deserves from both scientists and policymakers for several reasons. Firstly, the historical focus on temperature change has been further increased with the use of global warming levels motivated by an aim to be consistent with current policy framings. Secondly, an increasing attention paid to extreme weather has sometimes overshadowed longer time-scale changes such as the aridification of an increasing fraction of arable land and the increasing variability of the water cycle from month to month, season to season, and year to year that also yield cascading impacts on all water use sectors. Thirdly, a stronger focus is needed on understanding the effectiveness of current and future adaptation strategies in reducing water-related climate risks. Finally, the role of water has not been adequately recognized in the assessment of mitigation strategies although the compliance with the Paris Agreement and the current pledges all require a massive deployment of land-based strategies whose feasibility and efficiency heavily depend on water resources. It is thus essential to develop a more integrated approach to water and climate change, that would allow scientists and policymakers to “close the loop” between mitigation options, water cycle changes, hydrological impacts and adaptation.

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Section: Increasing Water Cycle Perturbations Due To Human Activitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Water remains a blind spot in climate change policies

Douville

Allan²,

Arias³

et al. 2022

PLOS Water

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“…MacAllister et al. (2022) have shown that in 20th century recharge from canal irrigation networks led to net groundwater accumulation in large transboundary aquifers in Central Pakistan and northwest India. Cuthbert, Taylor, et al.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These rivers are often located in arid climates with flat terrain and extensive groundwater withdrawals. MacAllister et al (2022) have shown that in 20th century recharge from canal irrigation networks led to net groundwater accumulation in large transboundary aquifers in Central Pakistan and northwest India. Cuthbert, Taylor, et al (2019) estimated that the groundwater recharge in sub-Saharan Africa is a predominantly focused type in semi-arid and hyper-arid areas.…”

Section: Implications and Prospectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stable Water Isotopes as an Indicator of Surface Water Intrusion in Shallow Aquifer Wells: A Cold Climate Perspective

Yapiyev

Rossi

Ala‐aho

et al. 2023

Water Resources Research

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Groundwater in shallow aquifers is commonly used for community water supply in cold climates. Shallow groundwaters are inherently susceptible to contamination from land‐use and surface water intrusion threatening drinking water usage. We used a large‐scale snapshot data set of stable water isotopes from shallow glaciofluvial aquifers used for drinking water supply in Northern Finland to assess surface water intrusion risks and recharge conditions. This data set was supplemented by long‐term stable water isotope precipitation data, Geographic Information System proximity analysis and multivariate statistics. The isotope analysis suggest that a warm season contributes about 60% to the total annual precipitation in the region. This is reflected in the aquifers isotopic composition as it represents an approximately equal mixture of warm and cold season precipitation. Groundwater isotope data normalized to precipitation inputs by line‐conditioned excess (lc‐excess) was used to flag the water supply wells impacted by surface water intrusions. The proximity analysis showed some of the wells may be affected by intrusions from gravel pit ponds, lakes and peatland drainage. On the larger scale, the wells in coastal areas were more likely to have evaporated water (intrusion) compared to inland regions of Northern Finland due to lower water availability and the presence of man‐made structures. This application of stable water isotopes with lc‐excess is a useful approach not only for recharge studies but also within water management for supply well surface water contamination risk assessment.

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“…According to Wada et al (2010), there are various hotspots of groundwater depletion throughout the World, the highest rates of groundwater depletion were observed in North-East Pakistan and North-West India. Several recent studies which are largely using the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment satellites data set identified groundwater depletion in Pakistan (Ahmed et al 2019;MacAllister et al 2022). Pakistan is one of the 36 countries under severe water stress, with a projected decrease of 500 cubic meters in water availability per capita.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Groundwater budgeting of Nari and Gaj formations and groundwater mapping of Karachi, Pakistan

et al. 2022

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Groundwater depletion is an emerging problem worldwide due to changes in climate and an increase in urbanization. Two significant water-bearing formations, the Oligocene-aged Nari and the Miocene-aged Gaj, were utilized as a case study exposed near Karachi, Pakistan. Groundwater budgeting was performed through a classical equation. The inflow of groundwater in the formations was calculated by thermo-pluviometric data and water loss of Hub Dam. The potential of evapotranspiration (PET) was calculated by the Thornthwaite method. The groundwater inflow from Hub Dam was estimated by using 20 years of annual water loss data by removing PET. The total mean annual inflow of groundwater in the formations was 2414.12 US Gallons per Second (gps). The annual mean outflow was estimated by calculation of groundwater usage for industries and domestic purposes and the mean annual groundwater outflow was 5562.61 US gps and an annual deficit of groundwater was 3148.5 US gps. The research is composed of validating the groundwater budget. Direct Current Electrical Resistivity (DCER) and static water level data from existing industrial wells were used for groundwater maps. The DCER data indicates A-Type and K-Type sub-surface with high resistivity in the three-layer model. The average water table of residential areas in 2019 was 60 m and in industrial areas was 130 m. The oscillation of the groundwater table over the last 20 years and the deficit of the groundwater budget shows an alarming condition for the future. If the same scenario persists, then by 2025, the water table will decline up to 140 m.

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A century of groundwater accumulation in Pakistan and northwest India

Cited by 31 publications

References 43 publications

Water remains a blind spot in climate change policies

Water remains a blind spot in climate change policies

Stable Water Isotopes as an Indicator of Surface Water Intrusion in Shallow Aquifer Wells: A Cold Climate Perspective

Groundwater budgeting of Nari and Gaj formations and groundwater mapping of Karachi, Pakistan

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