Groundwater level changes with a focus on agricultural areas in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, 2002-2016

Yan Dong; Chengsheng Jiang; Mayhah R Suri; Daphne Pee; Lingkui Meng; Rachel E Rosenberg Goldstein

doi:10.1016/j.envres.2019.01.004

Groundwater level changes with a focus on agricultural areas in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, 2002-2016

Environ Res. 2019 Apr:171:193-203. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2019.01.004. Epub 2019 Jan 4.

Authors

Yan Dong¹, Chengsheng Jiang², Mayhah R Suri³, Daphne Pee⁴, Lingkui Meng¹, Rachel E Rosenberg Goldstein⁵

Affiliations

¹ School of Remote Sensing and Information Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430079, China.
² Maryland Institute for Applied Environmental Health, University of Maryland School of Public Health, College Park, MD 20742, USA.
³ Department of Agricultural & Resource Economics, College of Agriculture & Natural Resources, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA.
⁴ University of Maryland Extension, College of Agriculture & Natural Resources, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA.
⁵ Maryland Institute for Applied Environmental Health, University of Maryland School of Public Health, College Park, MD 20742, USA; Department of Agricultural & Resource Economics, College of Agriculture & Natural Resources, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA. Electronic address: rerosenb@umd.edu.

PMID: 30665121
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2019.01.004

Abstract

Climate change impacts all water sources, including high quality groundwater that supplies agricultural irrigation in many regions of the United States. This study assessed groundwater level changes in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region with a focus on cultivated areas. Trends of groundwater level were estimated using linear regression, and examined for shallow, medium, and deep depths across physiographic regions of Mid-Atlantic. A hotspot analysis was conducted to identify spatial clusters of wells with rising or declining groundwater levels. In addition, differences in the percentage of cultivated area with declining groundwater between cultivated land categories was examined at the county level. From 2002-2016, the Mid-Atlantic region had an overall decline in groundwater level (0.06 m/yr, 95% CI: 0.03, 0.09) although groundwater changes varied by physiographic regions. The Coastal Plain physiographic region was dominated by declining groundwater wells (48%) and had the most significant groundwater level declines (0.23 m/yr, 95% CI: 0.19, 0.26). Significant groundwater level rises were detected in Southern Virginia adjacent to the Chesapeake Bay (0.92 m/yr on average), which could be due to the cessation of groundwater withdrawal from one of the region's largest groundwater users. In the Mid-Atlantic region, shallow groundwater was found to have slight rising trends (0.08 m, p < 0.05) while deeper groundwater showed distinctive declining trends (1.36 m, p < 0.05) between 2002 and 2016. There were significantly more cultivated areas with declining groundwater levels (88% vs. 35%, p < 0.05) in counties with high percentages of cropland (> 50%) compared to areas covered by less cropland. As climate and human pressures increase, it will be critical to identify and evaluate alternative water sources, such as reclaimed water, to sustain agricultural production and protect groundwater resources.

Keywords: Agriculture; Climate change; Groundwater; Mid-Atlantic; Water-level change.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

Agricultural Irrigation
Agriculture*
Environmental Monitoring*
Groundwater / analysis*
Humans
Mid-Atlantic Region
United States
Virginia
Water Supply / statistics & numerical data*