GENESIS Groundwater and Dependent Ecosystems: New Scientific and Technological Basis for Assessing Climate Change and Land-use Impacts on Groundwater

Groundwater resources are facing increasing pressure from consumptive uses (irrigation, water supply, industry) and  
contamination by diffuse loading (e.g. agriculture) and point sources (e.g. industry). This cause major threat and risks to our  
most valuable water resource and on ecosystems dependent on groundwater. New information is need on how to better  
protect groundwaters and groundwater dependent ecosystems (GDE) from intensive land-use and climate change. The  
impacts of land-use changes and climate changes are difficult to separate as they partly result in similar changes in the  
ecosystems affected. The effects are highly interwoven and complex. The EU groundwater directive (GWD) and the  
water framework directive (WFD) provide means to protect groundwater (GW) aquifers from pollution and deterioration. At  
present, the maximum limits for groundwater pollutant concentrations have been set for nitrate and various pesticides. Also,  
water of sufficient quality and quantity should be provided to ecosystems dependent on groundwater. The European  
aquifers differ by their geology, climate, and threats to aquifers. This must be considered when general guidelines for  
management of these systems are developed. The concept of the present proposal is to base the research on different  
relevant aquifer sites in various European countries to test scientific issues and find new results to important problems.