Ground water is one of the Nation’s most important natural resources. It provides about 40 percent of the Nation’s public water supply. In addition, more than 40 million people, including most of the rural population, supply their own drinking water from domestic wells. As a result, ground water is an important source of drinking water in every State. Ground water is also the source of much of the water used for irrigation. It is the Nation’s principal reserve of freshwater and represents much of the potential future water supply. Ground water is a major contributor to flow in many streams and rivers and has a strong influence on river and wetland habitats for plants and animals.
We begin by reviewing some pertinent facts and concepts about ground water and some commonmisconceptions about water budgets and ground-water sustainability. Individual chapters then focus on the interactions between ground water and surface water, on ground-water storage, and on ground-water quality as each aspect relates to the sustainability of ground-water resources. We conclude by discussing the importance of groundwater data, uses of ground-water models, and strategies to meet the challenges posed in assuring
sustainable use of ground-water resources.Throughout the report, we emphasize that development of ground-water resources has consequences to hydrologic and related environmental systems

Bibliographic information

Alley, W. M., Reilly, T.E., Franke, O.L. (1999). Sustainability of Ground-Water Resources U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1186 U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

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