Garth Rattray | We are depleting and damaging our aquifers

There aren’t enough green spaces being provided and preserved. Urban development, expansion, deforestation, paving, and other changes to the land prevent rainfall from soaking into the ground. The result of covering the earth with various buildings and paving over parking areas, automobile routes, and walking paths is the depletion of our aquifers.

Underground layers of rock, sand, gravel, and other materials store and transmit water. These giant sponges lie hidden beneath our feet and are among nature’s most important reservoirs. They passively collect and store rainwater that percolates down from the surface to replenish subterranean water supplies and sustain springs, rivers, wetlands, vegetation, and human communities through wells.

When the ability of the land to absorb water is compromised, the entire hydrological system suffers. There is significant rainwater runoff, severe flooding, and aquifer depletion. This adversely affects both plant and animal life.

Many areas are experiencing severe water scarcity during dry periods and excessive flooding during periods of heavy rain. These extremes are happening, in large part, because of the depletion of our underground reservoirs, our aquifers.

Additionally, the hydrological basin in the KSA area contains alluvial and limestone aquifers. Some are contaminated by sewage infiltration from leaky sewer mains and soakaway pit latrines. Industrial and commercial activities also contaminate some aquifers with chemicals. Both situations have existed since the mid-1980s.

Across the island, the depletion of our aquifers has serious consequences for all vegetation. Plants do not depend solely on rainfall. Flora obtains water from moisture stored within the soil and from groundwater systems.

As groundwater levels decline, this water becomes increasingly inaccessible. Vegetation may eventually die. The loss of vegetation creates another problem because plants help the land absorb and retain water. Their roots create channels through the soil, while vegetation slows rainfall before it reaches the ground and reduces erosion caused by runoff. Aquifer depletion creates a destructive cycle that contributes to many of the problems we are experiencing today.

Aquifers are not simply static subterranean pools. They are part of a dynamic system in which water moves through geological formations, sometimes over considerable distances. This groundwater contribution is often called baseflow. If groundwater levels fall sufficiently, rivers may experience reduced flow, particularly during prolonged dry seasons.

The disappearance or weakening of springs and rivers can have consequences throughout an ecosystem. Fish, amphibians, insects, birds, and other wildlife depend upon freshwater habitats. Plants growing along riverbanks and around springs also depend upon reliable water supplies. When these sources diminish, entire ecological communities can be disrupted.

There are also serious consequences for human beings. Communities that depend on wells may find that they produce less water or eventually run dry. Farmers may face declining supplies for irrigation, while households may experience water restrictions. As groundwater becomes scarce, competition for available water can intensify.

In coastal areas, excessive groundwater withdrawal can produce an additional danger: saltwater intrusion. Fresh groundwater normally exerts pressure against seawater underground. When freshwater levels are significantly reduced, seawater can move into freshwater-bearing formations, contaminating wells and making the water unsuitable for drinking or agriculture. Once a groundwater system becomes salinised, restoration may be impossible.

The consequences remind us that water management cannot focus exclusively on extracting water when it is needed. It must also consider how water returns to the underground system. Look around you and ask yourself: Are we protecting our forests and vegetation? Are we adequately preserving our wetlands, limiting unnecessary paving, maintaining areas where rainfall can infiltrate the soil, and regulating groundwater extraction? I think not.

The construction of vertical monstrosities on formerly traditional residential parcels of land is aimed at the maximum utilisation of space and the maximum return on investment. But in focusing on the economics, the ecosystem suffers because such developments often minimise, and sometimes entirely ignore, the need for green spaces.

And even in traditional housing schemes, there are times when reserved green spaces, such as designated parks, are developed and sold off for the construction of housing units through chicanery and corruption.

Some buildings are designed for people to live, sleep, or spend extended periods in. However, within the construction industry, a “habitable space” is defined as “a room or interior area used for living, sleeping, eating, or cooking”. This definition includes bedrooms, living rooms, dining rooms, and kitchens but excludes non-habitable areas such as bathrooms, hallways, closets, storage spaces, and utility rooms. There are physical prerequisites associated with habitable spaces. These include height, window space, doors, lighting, ventilation, ambient temperature, and accessibility.

There is a preferred ratio of habitable space to green space. This may vary by jurisdiction, but generally, modern urban planning recommends that it be between 30 per cent and 45 per cent. I cannot tell the last time I saw this.

And if you expect that the relevant authorities are seeing to the preservation of our aquifers, know that they are also afflicted with the same pervasive incompetence, corruption and unaccountability rotting our society.

Aquifers are our natural inheritance. However, ongoing and increasing construction and paving are causing them to be depleted much faster than they can be replenished. Some are also being contaminated. The National Water Commission frequently uses the catchphrase “Water is Life”. This is aimed at sensitising citizens to the need for water conservation and paying for their utility service. But the authorities rarely speak about the critical need to conserve our aquifers even though they sustain all plant and animal life above them.

Garth Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice and author of The Long and Short of Thick and Thin. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and garthrattray@gmail.com.