Groundwater levels are declining across the country as our withdrawals exceed the rate of aquifers to naturally replenish themselves, called recharge. One method of controlling declining water levels is by using artificial groundwater recharge. The USGS monitors wells to evaluate the effect of groundwater depletion and recharge, and provides vital information to those who depend on groundwater resources.
BACKGROUND
Artificial recharge is the practice of increasing the amount of water that enters an aquifer through human-controlled means. For example, groundwater can be artificially recharged by redirecting water across the land surface through canals, infiltration basins, or ponds; adding irrigation furrows or sprinkler systems; or simply injecting water directly into the subsurface through injection wells.
AQUIFER STORAGE AND RECOVER
Aquifer storage and recovery is a water-storage technique applied by water-resource managers and scientists worldwide. Essentially, it involves storage of available water through wells completed into aquifers, with subsequent retrieval from these same wells during dry periods. Recovery of water stored in these wells greatly benefits environmental, agricultural, and urban uses.
RELATED USGS RESEARCH
The USGS has played an active role in artificial recharge studies dating back to 19051. Based on the number of current studies, USGS investigations of aquifer storage and recovery are just as essential today as they were 100 years ago.
- What is Aquifer Storage and Recovery?
- Historical Overview of Hydrologic Studies of Artificial Recharge in the USGS
- USGS Groundwater and Streamflow Information Program
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
- Aquifer Recharge and Aquifer Storage and Recovery (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)
- Aquifer Storage and Recovery Fact Sheet (U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency)
- An Introduction to Artificial Recharge (The National Academies of Press)
There has been a long and complex history of USGS groundwater recharge research. Here are a few select studies that demonstrate USGS capabilities.
The Effects of Artificial Recharge on Nitrate Concentrations in Groundwater in the Joshua Tree Subbasin, California
Subsidence from Aquifer-Storage and Recovery in the East Bay Plain
Below are a few USGS FAQs associated with this groundwater.
How important is groundwater?
Groundwater, which is in aquifers below the surface of the Earth, is one of the Nation's most important natural resources. Groundwater is the source of about 37 percent of the water that county and city water departments supply to households and businesses (public supply). It provides drinking water for more than 90 percent of the rural population who do not get their water delivered to them from...
What is groundwater?
Groundwater is water that exists underground in saturated zones beneath the land surface. The upper surface of the saturated zone is called the water table. Contrary to popular belief, groundwater does not form underground rivers. It fills the pores and fractures in underground materials such as sand, gravel, and other rock, much the same way that water fills a sponge. If groundwater flows...
- Overview
Groundwater levels are declining across the country as our withdrawals exceed the rate of aquifers to naturally replenish themselves, called recharge. One method of controlling declining water levels is by using artificial groundwater recharge. The USGS monitors wells to evaluate the effect of groundwater depletion and recharge, and provides vital information to those who depend on groundwater resources.
BACKGROUND
Artificial recharge is the practice of increasing the amount of water that enters an aquifer through human-controlled means. For example, groundwater can be artificially recharged by redirecting water across the land surface through canals, infiltration basins, or ponds; adding irrigation furrows or sprinkler systems; or simply injecting water directly into the subsurface through injection wells.
Sources/Usage: Public Domain.Natural groundwater recharge occurs as precipitation falls on the land surface, infiltrates into soils, and moves through pore spaces down to the water table. Natural recharge also can occur as surface-water leakage from rivers, streams, lakes, and wetlands. Artificial recharge can be done through injection of water through wells. This method often is applied to recharge deep aquifers where application of water to the land surface are not effective at recharging these aquifers. AQUIFER STORAGE AND RECOVER
Aquifer storage and recovery is a water-storage technique applied by water-resource managers and scientists worldwide. Essentially, it involves storage of available water through wells completed into aquifers, with subsequent retrieval from these same wells during dry periods. Recovery of water stored in these wells greatly benefits environmental, agricultural, and urban uses.
RELATED USGS RESEARCH
The USGS has played an active role in artificial recharge studies dating back to 19051. Based on the number of current studies, USGS investigations of aquifer storage and recovery are just as essential today as they were 100 years ago.
- What is Aquifer Storage and Recovery?
- Historical Overview of Hydrologic Studies of Artificial Recharge in the USGS
- USGS Groundwater and Streamflow Information Program
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
- Aquifer Recharge and Aquifer Storage and Recovery (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)
- Aquifer Storage and Recovery Fact Sheet (U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency)
- An Introduction to Artificial Recharge (The National Academies of Press)
- Science
There has been a long and complex history of USGS groundwater recharge research. Here are a few select studies that demonstrate USGS capabilities.
The Effects of Artificial Recharge on Nitrate Concentrations in Groundwater in the Joshua Tree Subbasin, California
The Joshua Basin Water District (JBWD) is implementing an artificial groundwater recharge program to reverse the decline of groundwater levels and to store water in the Joshua Tree groundwater subbasin of the Morongo groundwater basin (~100 mi east of Los Angeles, CA).Subsidence from Aquifer-Storage and Recovery in the East Bay Plain
The East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) has proposed to store and recover as much as 10 million gallons of water per day (MGD) at an aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) site, the Bayside Groundwater Project. Water will be stored in a 100-ft sequence of coarse-grained sediment (the "Deep Aquifer") underlying the East Bay Plain and the adjacent Niles Cone ground-water basin. - Publications
- Software
- News
- FAQ
Below are a few USGS FAQs associated with this groundwater.
How important is groundwater?
Groundwater, which is in aquifers below the surface of the Earth, is one of the Nation's most important natural resources. Groundwater is the source of about 37 percent of the water that county and city water departments supply to households and businesses (public supply). It provides drinking water for more than 90 percent of the rural population who do not get their water delivered to them from...
What is groundwater?
Groundwater is water that exists underground in saturated zones beneath the land surface. The upper surface of the saturated zone is called the water table. Contrary to popular belief, groundwater does not form underground rivers. It fills the pores and fractures in underground materials such as sand, gravel, and other rock, much the same way that water fills a sponge. If groundwater flows...