Rising temperatures, extreme events, sea-level rise: climate change is reshaping the groundwater cycle. Which signals to watch and how to adapt aquifer management?
Groundwater is a precious buffer against climate hazards. But this buffer is not infinite, and the climate is already altering its inflows and outflows.
An increasingly uncertain recharge
More intense rainfall concentrates precipitation into short windows, favouring runoff over infiltration. As a result, for the same total, effective recharge can decline.
The coast on the front line
Sea-level rise and falling freshwater levels intensify saline intrusion. Coastal aquifers, often the most exploited, see their quality degrade in ways that are sometimes irreversible.
“Adapting groundwater management to the climate is not about predicting the future: it is about reducing our vulnerability to the most likely scenarios.”
Adapting management
Enhanced monitoring, managed aquifer recharge, source diversification and protection of recharge zones are among the levers. Their relevance is always judged locally, based on real data.
- Densify piezometric and quality monitoring networks
- Map recharge zones to preserve
- Model climate scenarios on key aquifers
- Plan back-up sources and storage
