Contents
What are the consequences of a lower water table?
Some of the negative effects of ground-water depletion include increased pumping costs, deterioration of water quality, reduction of water in streams and lakes, or land subsidence.
What happens below the water table?
Underneath the water table is the saturated zone, where water fills all spaces between sediments. The saturated zone is bounded at the bottom by impenetrable rock. The groundwater found below the water table comes from precipitation that has seeped through surface soil.
Why has the water table been lowered?
The two main causes of Depletion of Water Table are Deforestation and Over-pumping of groundwater.
What will happen if the groundwater level goes down?
A groundwater shortage keeps additional water from flowing into lakes, rivers and seas. This means that over time, less water will enter as the existing surface water continues to evaporate. As the water becomes less deep, it will affect everything in that particular region, including fish and wildlife.
Why is the water level going down?
Pumping water out of the ground faster than it is replenished over the long-term causes similar problems. The volume of groundwater in storage is decreasing in many areas of the United States in response to pumping. Groundwater depletion is primarily caused by sustained groundwater pumping.
How do I lower the water table under my house?
How to Lower a Water Table
- Install a groundwater well or use an existing well on your property for the project.
- Place a submersible pump in the groundwater well.
- Measure the depth to groundwater in the well before you turn on the pump.
- Turn the pump on and estimate a stable pumping rate that the aquifer can sustain.
How far down is the water table?
Groundwater may be near the Earth’s surface or as deep as 30,000 feet, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
What does it mean to lower the water table?
This lowering of the water table is known as drawdown, and may amount to many tens of feet (see figure 1 below). This is why thinly saturated zones are unsuitable for high volume pumping even if substantial water is present — the saturated thickness must be large enough so that the pump can remain completely submerged at maximum drawdown.
What causes the drawdown of the water table?
When the groundwater system has adjusted to the pumping, the resulting pattern of water table depression is sometimes referred to as steady-state drawdown; this feature is illustrated in figure 1.
Where does the water from the water table come from?
The groundwater found below the water table comes from precipitation that has seeped through surface soil. Springs are formed where the water table naturally meets the land surface, causing groundwater to flow from the surface and eventually into a stream, river, or lake.
How is groundwater depletion related to the water table?
LOWERING OF THE WATER TABLE. Pumping has removed water from storage in basalt aquifers and caused declines in many areas of the Columbia Plateau. The most severe consequence of excessive groundwater pumping is that the water table, below which the ground is saturated with water, can be lowered.