Published on: 15/03/2011
A new global map could help improve water resource management and climate modelling, and eventually lead to new insights into a range of geological processes. The map uses permeability data to a much greater depth than before - up to approximately 100 metres - and across greater areas. This makes it possible to evaluate sustainable groundwater resources as well as the impact of groundwater on climate change at the global scale. The maps and data were published in Geophysical Research Letters [1].
The map was developed by researchers from the University of British Columbia (Canada), the US Geological Survey, the University of Hamburg (Germany) and Utrecht University (The Netherlands).
A better understanding of large scale permeability of rock and sediment is critical for water resource management--groundwater represents approximately 99 per cent of the fresh, unfrozen water on earth. Groundwater also feeds surface water bodies and moistens the root zone of terrestrial plants. [...]
The study's maps include a global map at a resolution of 13,000 kilometres squared, and a much more detailed North American map at a resolution of 75 kilometres squared.
The research also improves on previous permeability databases by compiling regional-scale hydrogeological models from a variety of settings instead of relying on permeability data from small areas.
[1] Gleeson, T., L. Smith, N. Moosdorf, J. Hartmann, H. H. Dürr, A. H. Manning, L. P. H. van Beek, and A. M. Jellinek (2011). Mapping permeability over the surface of the Earth, Geophys. Res. Lett., 38, L02401, doi:10.1029/2010GL045565. Full text
Source: University of British Columbia, 24 Jan 2011
