More than 50% of the world's population already live in cities,
and the proportion is rising extremely rapidly towards developed
country levels of more than 90%. Groundwater from wells is the
major source of water supply for many of these cities, however,
groundwater is polluted by the cities that overlie it and sewerage
systems are often absent, or leak. Industrial landuse implies the
use of large quantities of chemicals, and it is the poor disposal
and accidental spillage of these chemicals which results in the
contamination of virtually every industrial site in the world. Much
of this pollution migrates deeper to damage groundwater.
Groundwater has slow turnover time, often measured in decades and
centuries, reducing the self-cleansing capacity. Urban aquifers are
therefore vitally important but very fragile, easily damaged and
slow to repair. Urban groundwater problems and solutions vary
greatly around the world. Mature cities often have remote and clean
water supplies, good sewerage systems, strict controls on
groundwater and land use, and declining industries. However, they
have a legacy of more than one hundred years of waste disposal and
industrially-contaminated land which continues to cause problems.
Rapidly urbanising cities are frequently dependent on local
groundwater and have poor sanitation and uncontrolled industry.
These factors present many immediate risks to human health. This
book explains the nature and value of urban groundwater, discussing
the types of pollutants that are found, and their sources. The
unique aspect of this book is the in-depth discussion of six
different urban environments, complete with case studies. These
environments are: Mature industrial cities; Arid-zone cities;
Weathered crystalline aquifers in sub-Saharan Africa; Cities
overlying karst aquifers; Alluvial aquifer systems; Shallow
aquifers in Mediterranean climates.
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