Filimonau Viachaslau, Barth Johannes A C
Faculty of Management, Bournemouth University, Talbot Campus, Fern Barrow, Poole, Dorset, BH12 5BB, UK.
Department of Geography and Geosciences, Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU), GeoZentrum Nordbayern, Schlossgarten 5, 91054, Erlangen, Germany.
Environ Manage. 2016 Sep;58(3):491-503. doi: 10.1007/s00267-016-0722-2. Epub 2016 Jun 18.
Groundwater is one of the most important environmental resources and its use continuously rises globally for industrial, agricultural, and drinking water supply purposes. Because of its importance, more knowledge about the volume of usable groundwater is necessary to satisfy the global demand. Due to the challenges in quantifying the volume of available global groundwater, studies which aim to assess its magnitude are limited in number. They are further restricted in scope and depth of analysis as, in most cases, they do not explain how the estimates of global groundwater resources have been obtained, what methods have been used to generate the figures and what levels of uncertainty exist. This article reviews the estimates of global groundwater resources. It finds that the level of uncertainty attached to existing numbers often exceeds 100 % and strives to establish the reasons for discrepancy. The outcome of this study outlines the need for a new agenda in water research with a more pronounced focus on groundwater. This new research agenda should aim at enhancing the quality and quantity of data provision on local and regional groundwater stocks and flows. This knowledge enhancement can serve as a basis to improve policy-making on groundwater resources globally. Research-informed policies will facilitate more effective groundwater management practices to ensure a more rapid progress of the global water sector towards the goal of sustainability.
地下水是最重要的环境资源之一，在全球范围内，其用于工业、农业和饮用水供应的用量持续上升。鉴于其重要性，有必要获取更多关于可用地下水量的知识，以满足全球需求。由于在量化全球可用地下水量方面存在挑战，旨在评估其规模的研究数量有限。这些研究在分析范围和深度上也受到进一步限制，因为在大多数情况下，它们并未解释全球地下水资源的估计值是如何得出的、使用了哪些方法来生成这些数据以及存在何种不确定性水平。本文回顾了全球地下水资源的估计情况。研究发现，现有数据所附带的不确定性水平往往超过100%，并力求找出差异存在的原因。这项研究的结果概述了水研究新议程的必要性，该议程应更显著地聚焦于地下水。这一新的研究议程应旨在提高关于地方和区域地下水位和流量的数据提供的质量和数量。这种知识的增强可作为改进全球地下水资源决策的基础。基于研究的政策将促进更有效的地下水管理实践，以确保全球水行业朝着可持续发展目标取得更快进展。
