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Ground Water--Continued
Water-use specialists at the U.S. Geological Survey report that about 341 billion gallons of freshwater a day was used in the United States in 1995 for public supplies, rural domestic and livestock uses, irrigation, industrial and mining uses, and for thermoelectric power. About 22 percent of this water, or 76.4 billion gallons a day, was ground water that was obtained from wells and springs. The use of ground water in seven States-Arkansas, Florida, Hawaii, Kansas, Mississippi, Nebraska, and Oklahoma-- exceeded the use of surface water.
| Comparison of ground-water use with total water use in the United States, 1995 | ||
| [Bgal/d, billion gallons per day. Number in parentheses represents the percentage of ground water as part of total water use for each category] | ||
| Type of use | Total water use in Bgal/d | Ground-water use in Bgal/d |
| Public supplies | 40 | 15 (38) |
| Rural domestic and livestock | 9 | 6 (63) |
| Irrigation | 134 | 49 (37) |
| Industrial | 26 | 6 (23) |
| Thermoelectric | 132 | 1 (0) |
| Totals | 341 | 76 (22) |
| Totals, (excluding thermoelectric) | 209 | 75 (36) |
| Source: U.S. Geologial Survey Circular 1200--Estimated use of water in the United States in 1995 | ||
Five western States--California, Idaho, Kansas, Nebraska, and Texas--used about 35 billion gallons per day of ground water. This average daily water use of 35 billion gallons accounts for about 46 percent of the total volume of ground water used in the Nation during 1995. The use of ground water increased steadily from 1950 to 1980 and generally has decreased since 1980. About 51 percent of the Nation's population depends on ground water for domestic uses.
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Withdrawals of fresh ground water, 1950 to1995.
The Nation's total supply of water is large. Average annual streamflow in the conterminous (48) States is about 1,200 billion gallons a day or about three times the present water use. Much of the flow is sustained by discharge from ground-water reservoirs. The distribution of water in both space and time is irregular, and some areas already face serious regional water shortages because of using some water faster than it is naturally replenished. Further development of energy, mineral, and agricultural resources is dependent largely upon adequate water supplies. Therefore, ground-water resources will become even more valuable in the years ahead as the Nation copes with growing natural-resource and environmental problems and increased water demands.
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Appraising the Nation's Ground-Water Resources Glossary