Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-3202, USA.
Ambio. 2012 Nov;41(7):657-69. doi: 10.1007/s13280-012-0328-8. Epub 2012 Jul 7.
Hyperarid, arid, and semi-arid lands represent over a third of the Earth's land surface, and are home to over 38 % of the increasing world population. Freshwater is a limiting resource on these lands, and withdrawal of groundwater substantially exceeds recharge. Withdrawals of groundwater for expanding agricultural and domestic use severely limit water availability for groundwater dependent ecosystems. We examine here, with emphasis on quantitative data, case histories of groundwater withdrawals at widely differing scales, on three continents, that range from the impact of a few wells, to the outcomes of total appropriation of flow in a major river system. The case histories provide a glimpse of the immense challenge of replacing groundwater resources once they are severely depleted, and put into sharp focus the question whether the magnitude of the current and future human, economic, and environmental consequences and costs of present practices of groundwater exploitation are adequately recognized.
极度干旱、干旱和半干旱地区占地球陆地表面的三分之一以上，居住着世界上不断增长的 38%以上的人口。在这些地区，淡水是一种有限的资源，地下水的开采量大大超过了补给量。为了扩大农业和家庭用水而抽取地下水，严重限制了依赖地下水的生态系统的水资源供应。我们在这里重点研究了三个大陆上不同规模的地下水开采案例历史，从几口井的影响到一个主要河流系统全部流量的分配结果，这些案例历史让我们一窥一旦地下水资源严重枯竭，所面临的巨大挑战，并鲜明地凸显了一个问题，即当前和未来人类、经济和环境后果以及地下水开采实践的成本是否得到了充分认识。
