Draining the Planet

ProPublica has mapped the worrying increase in groundwater depletion around the world. In The Drying Planet, the publication examines the hidden reservoirs that lie beneath our feet - vast underground aquifers that supply drinking water, irrigate crops, and sustain industries. When these aquifers are pumped faster than they can be replenished, they begin to shrink, sometimes irreversibly. This process, known as groundwater depletion, can cause land to sink, reduce river flows, and even contribute to rising sea levels as the lost freshwater eventually drains into the oceans.

The map at the center of ProPublica’s feature is built on more than two decades of data collected by NASA’s GRACE (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment) satellites. Co-authored by hydrologist Jay Famiglietti, the underlying study takes a comprehensive inventory of Earth’s freshwater - spanning glaciers, rivers, lakes, soil moisture, and aquifers - and tracks how it is changing over time.

The results of the study reveal a stark truth: the rapid drying of landmasses is largely driven by the human over-pumping of groundwater, which now accounts for 68% of water loss in non-glaciated regions. This could have devastating consequences, leading to rising seas, threatening food security, and intensifying the global impacts of climate change.

Unfortunately, ProPublica never allows readers to explore the data for themselves. Their Mapbox powered visualization of groundwater depletion pans and zooms as you scroll, highlighting conditions in various locations around the world. However, if you live in the Southern Hemisphere, you’ll likely never see how your country is affected, since ProPublica focuses mainly on North America. While this is understandable given its primarily American audience, it feels like a strange editorial choice to create a global map and then never allow your readers to explore it.

Via: Map of the Week