Drying Wells, Rising Stakes – Towards Sustainable Agricultural Groundwater Use

Drying Wells, Rising Stakes – Towards Sustainable Agricultural Groundwater Use

Groundwater has provided great benefits to agriculture irrigation in semi-arid OECD countries, but its intensive use beyond recharge in certain regions has depleted resources and generated significant negative environmental externalities. The report provides a characterisation of the diversity of groundwater systems, reviews policies in OECD countries, and proposes a package of recommendations to ensure that groundwater can sustain its services to agriculture and contribute to climate change adaptation.

Contents:

The worrisome trends in groundwater irrigation expansion; Understanding agricultural groundwater systems and challenges; What policy instruments help to manage agricultural groundwater use sustainably?; What agricultural groundwater policies exist in OECD countries?; Towards adaptive groundwater management in agriculture