Human imprint of water withdrawals in the wet environment: A case study of declining groundwater in Georgia, USA

Abstract

Study regionGeorgia in the Southeast USA. Study focusThe ‘water-rich’ Southeast USA has long been thought to be immune to climate change effects, leading to unsustainable water withdrawals practices. This study analyzed the impact of climate change and human activities, e.g., irrigation on groundwater trends at 43 monitoring wells from 1981 to 2017 in four distinct hydrogeologic provinces of Georgia, USA. We have corroborated the groundwater trend analysis with the surface water and climate trend analysis. New hydrological insightsThe deep confined Coastal Plain and Floridan aquifer systems show statistically significant declines in groundwater level. By contrast, the Surficial aquifer system shows relatively neutral trends over the same period. The water table in the shallower aquifers corresponds closely to the changes in the precipitation and streamflow trends. A declining secular trend in the deeper confined aquifer is potentially attributable to the irrigation water withdrawals in Georgia.