Sophie Vermooten, Hydrogeologist

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International Groundwater Resources Assessment
Centre
A Global Monitoring of Groundwater Resources

• Sophie Vermooten, Hydrogeologist

Koblenz, September 2007
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What is IGRAC?

• A non-profit centre that facilitates and promotes
  global sharing of information and knowledge
  required for sustainable groundwater resources
  development and management.

• An initiative of UNESCO and WMO from 1999,
• Launched at WWF3 in Kyoto in Spring 2003,
• Receives financial support from the Dutch
  government,
• Hosted by TNO, Subsurface and Groundwater unit at
  Utrecht (NL)

• From January 2008, this unit will be part of
  new Dutch institute called DELTARES together with
  WL delft hydraulics, Geodelft and parts of RIZA
  and RIKZ

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• Groundwater represents globally
• 96 of the fresh fluid water
• 23 of the irrigation water
• 53 of public water demand
• 97 of rural drinking water

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To overview and compare...by browsing searching
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Global overview
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Global overview
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Global overview
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Groundwater Monitoring Inventories and Database

• Inventory of existing guidelines and protocols
  for groundwater assessment and monitoring

• World-wide inventory of groundwater monitoring

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Groundwater Monitoring Inventories and Database
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GGMSGlobal Groundwater Monitoring System
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Global Groundwater Monitoring System (GGMS)

• No systematic monitoring and assessment of
  groundwater change on global scale.
• IGRAC intends to establish a sustainable GGMS for
  a periodic assessment of the global change of
  groundwater resources

• GGMS postulates
• A system rather then a network use of existing
  networks
• Aggregated groundwater information carried out by
  regional specialists, involving point
  measurements and proxy values
• Web-based collection, analysis and dissemination
  of information

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GGMS use of existing networks

• Why not a new network?
• Extremely difficult to set up and sustain
  (incentives and mandate),
• Favorable position of IGRAC as UNESCO/WMO centre.

• Inventory on
• Networks/programmes which gather groundwater data
  (aggregated or not)
• Networks/programmes that use data collection
  procedures potentially applicable for the GGMS
• The people networks that might be useful to get
  data

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GGMS the aggregation procedure

• Why aggregated information?
• Limited representativeness of point measurements
  (aggregation using the expert knowledge and proxy
  values)
• Obstacles related to international exchange of
  data (aggregated value is derived information).

• Yet to be defined (by an expert group next month)
• Monitoring density (grid uniform for all the
  countries and all the variables?)
• Monitoring frequency (monthly, yearly)
• Monitoring variables (levels, quality,
  groundwater use)
• Aggregated and also (by regional expert) derived
  values?

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GGMS the web-based system

• Why web-based system?
• Easy reporting and analysis tool (only a browser
  required),
• A control over information provided,
• Involvement and recognition.

• A prototype developed (ArcGIS9.2 Oracle)
• An operational version
• Implemented country estimation/ aggregation
  procedure
• A simple upload of proxy data
• Transboundary harmonisation and global
  aggregation
• Presentation functionality (spatial time-series
  outputs)
• Download facility

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GGMS synergy with Remote Sensing

• Interpretation of GRACE (Gravity Recovery And
  Climate Experiment) observations as a
  complementary approach to the terrestrial
  measurements
• Use of other Remote Sensing techniques for the
  groundwater monitoring on regional scale

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GGMS synergy with Global Models

• Use of regional/global hydrological models for
  simulation and prediction purposes

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GGMS the further steps

• IGWCO/GARS/UNESCO groundwater groupThe second
  meeting/workshop at IGRAC, 18-19 October 2007

• GRAPHIC (Groundwater Resources Assessment under
  the Pressures of Humanity and Climate Change)
• GEO Water Task WA-06-05 (global in-situ water
  observations)
• EC FP7 Environment

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Our questions

• Are there possibilities/opportunities to join
  existing networks (people networks)
• What is your experience when gathering data on a
  country level?

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www.igrac.nl
Thank you for your attention