Development and management of fossil groundwater resources for purposes of drought mitigation
Howard, K.W.F. (1990). Development and management of fossil groundwater resources for purposes of drought mitigation, in: Paepe, R. et al. Greenhouse Effect, Sea Level and Drought. Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Geohydrological Management of Sea Level and Mitigation of Drought, Fuerteventura, Canary Islands (Spain), March 1-7, 1989. NATO ASI Series C: Mathematical and Physical Sciences, 325: pp. 495-512. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-0701-0_30 In: Paepe, R. et al. (Ed.) (1990). Greenhouse Effect, Sea Level and Drought. Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Geohydrological Management of Sea Level and Mitigation of Drought, Fuerteventura, Canary Islands (Spain), March 1-7, 1989. Digitized reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1990. NATO ASI Series C: Mathematical and Physical Sciences, 325. Kluwer Academic Publishers: Dordrecht. ISBN 978-94-009-0701-0. xix, 718 pp. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-0701-0, more In: NATO ASI Series C: Mathematical and Physical Sciences. D. Reidel: Dordrecht; Boston; Lancaster. ISSN 0258-2023, more |
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| Abstract | Immense volumes of fossil groundwater underlying one third of North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, provide the key to the mitigation of drought and alleviation of famine. However, given that these groundwaters are finite and essentially non-renewable, the development of an appropriate aquifer management strategy represents a difficult challenge, particularly as this strategy must reject the traditional and conservative “safe yield” approach to groundwater development, and recognize groundwater mining as a viable alternative. It is concluded that groundwater mining is an acceptable approach provided, i) it is positively planned and realistically evaluated in advance, ii) close control over groundwater production is exercised, and iii) there is a clear and feasible plan for alternative water supplies when the groundwater resources are exhausted. It is also important that the development program is kept flexible, thus allowing refinements to be incorporated as development proceeds and data on the aquifer’s response to pumping become available. This “operational approach” to management policy development would likely involve staged groundwater production, intense monitoring and a continual upgrading of resource and economic assessments |
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