Groundwater depletion in the Hai River Basin, China, from in situ and GRACE observations

The Hai River Basin (HRB) is a heavily irrigated region encompassing the North China Plain (NCP) in northeast China. In the last decades, continuous lowering of groundwater levels had been reported in the NCP. This study used data from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) and in situ measurements to quantify recent changes in groundwater storage from 2003 to 2012. The signal from GRACE observations highlight a sharp decline in the deep subsurface water stores (deep unsaturated zone and groundwater systems) up to a rate of 17.0 +/- 4.3 mm year(-1) between 2003 and 2012 over the HRB, equal to a volumetric loss of 5.5 +/- 1.4 km(3) year(-1). This result shows good consistency with in situ observations of groundwater hydraulic heads compiled from monitoring bores, and emphasizes GRACE's ability to monitor large-scale groundwater storage variations. Results from GRACE also provide an independent assessment of the effectiveness of water saving programmes that have been implemented by the government so far. Our study indicates that groundwater overdrawal is still prevalent and the dominant factor for the persistent loss in groundwater storage over the HRB/NCP; the current groundwater consumption pattern is far beyond the natural recharge ability in groundwater system. [GRAPHICS] Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Associate editor T. Wagener