EGU21: Groundwater resources management: reconciling demand, high quality resources and sustainability

[Maurizio Polemio]

Dear Colleagues,

We invite you to submit an abstract to our virtual EGU 2021 session: “Groundwater resources management: reconciling demand, high quality resources and sustainability”.  

https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU21/sessionmodification/39099

The abstract submission deadline is 13 January 2021, 13:00 CET.

The session is linked to the special issue of Water on the same subject (https://www.mdpi.com/journal/water/special_issues/groundwater_Management) on which each contribution could be published.

Session Description: Climate change, world population forecasts of 9 billion by 2050, growing urbanisation and irrigated agriculture will add extra pressures on water resources and the environment. Groundwater is worldwide the main source for domestic supply and irrigation. Water scarcity occurs facing a severe combination of a lack and increasing demand for high-quality water. As a result, a negative water balance is widespread established. Pressures on groundwater arise from pollution sources mainly due to the agriculture use of chemicals as well as to the inflows of domestic and industrial wastewater into aquifers. Approximately 70% of the population on earth lives in coastal areas and most of these people depend on coastal aquifers for freshwater, facing salinization problems. Many islands face seawater intrusion problems. Many coastal aquifer systems are reported to be affected by quality and quantity deteriorations due to seawater intrusion and irrational management. In this framework, the challenge is reconciling demand satisfaction, durable quality and quality sustainability of resources, and climate change, pursuing adaptation and mitigation solutions.

This session accepts the challenge calling any contribution to previous subjects which include any useful innovative scientific activities. A non-exhaustive list of desired contributions includes tools, equipment, methods, modelling, and/or experiences on hydrogeological, geophysical, geochemical mapping and aquifer characterization, including assessment of climate change impacts on groundwater resources in terms of groundwater resource quantity and quality and/or dependent ecosystem status; tools for efficient online visualization and dissemination; risk and vulnerability assessment methods; and monitoring experiences especially if linked to management approaches. All these types of experiences must share the aim of contributing to success in the challenge.

We look forward to your submissions! 

Maurizio Polemio,CNR-IRPI (Italy)

Konstantinos Voudouris, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (Greece)