The frequent photographs of parched African landscapes are familiar to all of us. Recent research tells a different story than the typical one of acute horrendous freshwater scarcity.
Accounting for Groundwater
A good map of underground aquifers has always existed for much of the world -except for Africa.
Freshwater availability projections for Africa have always omitted accounting for groundwater - till now.
Africa's Aquifers
The productivity of Africa's aquifers has now been quantified.
Apparently there is a lot of water underground in much of Africa.
The orange and yellow areas, in the accompanying larger map, only cover 15-20% of the African continent, and identify aquifers with lowest expected productivity.
The blue and black colored areas are those with aquifers with the highest productivity.
In the smaller map, the same orange and yellow colors identify the worst condition i.e. the areas where the aquifers are the farthest underground.
Bottom Line
Underground aquifers contain:
1. More than 100 times the annual renewable freshwater resources, and
2. More than 20 times the freshwater stored in all of Africa'a lakes and other surface reservoirs
Now all we need to do is figure out a way to get this water to Africa's people who can drink it and use it for growing much-needed food.
Accounting for Groundwater
A good map of underground aquifers has always existed for much of the world -except for Africa.
Freshwater availability projections for Africa have always omitted accounting for groundwater - till now.
Africa's Aquifers
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| Source - Environmental Research Letters Journal Dated 19 April 2012 |
Apparently there is a lot of water underground in much of Africa.
The orange and yellow areas, in the accompanying larger map, only cover 15-20% of the African continent, and identify aquifers with lowest expected productivity.
The blue and black colored areas are those with aquifers with the highest productivity.
In the smaller map, the same orange and yellow colors identify the worst condition i.e. the areas where the aquifers are the farthest underground.
Bottom Line
Underground aquifers contain:
1. More than 100 times the annual renewable freshwater resources, and
2. More than 20 times the freshwater stored in all of Africa'a lakes and other surface reservoirs
Now all we need to do is figure out a way to get this water to Africa's people who can drink it and use it for growing much-needed food.
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