Impact of climate variability on groundwater in coastal cities

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Population growth, sprawling cities and the effects of climate change seriously threaten the sustainability of global water supplies. Pro-active resource management decisions are required, but such efforts will prove meaningless unless reliable predictions can be made of the impact that rapidly changing conditions will impart upon the water cycle and water resources. The threat is especially severe in coastal cities which host close to 50% of the global population. In many coastal cities, the management and protection of groundwater is already challenged by accelerating demand for the resource in the face of depleted natural recharge, pollution from urban-sourced contaminants and (for sea coasts) the intrusion of seawater. Climate variability and changing sea levels will intensify such resource management problems by altering the recharge regime and stimulating the movement of both contaminants and the fresh-saline water interface.