Opportunities and challenges

Abstract

Almost half of the global population depend on groundwater sources to meet their basic needs. Sustaining and improving existing sources and further developing groundwater are fundamental to the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 6.1 for Safe Drinking Water. Domestic water withdrawals tend to be low compared to large-scale irrigation and industry but different uses can compete. While technologies to develop, lift, and/or distribute groundwater are well-developed and widely available, they do not always perform as well as they should, and water supplies even fail prematurely. Variations in groundwater availability and ease of extraction need to be carefully considered when developing groundwater, as do local circumstances and histories. Services that are financed by the public, and by households themselves (self-supply) are both important for the attainment of SDG Target 6.2. Groundwater development and its sustainable use is being undermined by a number of pressing challenges. The main ones relate to skills and knowledge and governance, both of which are underpinned by the need for investments in key areas. Harnessing the opportunities that groundwater provides to meet SDG Target 6.1 requires coordinated and long-term action to address issues at local, national, and regional levels, as well as globally.