The groundwater situation in many parts of
More than 79 billion cubic metres of fresh groundwater are tapped annually in northern
At the same time, 26.7 billion cubic metres of groundwater is tapped in the south each year, accounting for only 13.2 per cent of the exploitable reserves, he said.
Based on developments in the past decade, the groundwater situation will remain stable in the south, where rainfall is ample, but will become worse in the north, Zhang said.
As a result, many places have suffered from environmental damage such as ground settling and depression, salt-water intrusion in some coastal regions, and desertification in the hinterland, Zhang said.
To reverse the situation,
Groundwater in most parts of the
Yin, director of the CGS Hydrogeology and Environmental Geology Department, said
"The nation's groundwater management has lagged behind the world for years," he said.
Groundwater is any water found below the land surface. It exists almost everywhere underground, for example in the space between particles of rock and soil or in crevices and cracks in rock.
More than 240 scientists from 56 countries attended the five-day event, which "is an important forum for Chinese researchers to learn groundwater management from other countries," said Yin, who is also the secretary-general of the organizing committee.
Co-sponsored by the MLR and the IAH, the congress will promote the survey, assessment, utilization, protection and management of groundwater in
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