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United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs Sustainable Development

Produce and disseminate open, global groundwater datasets

International Groundwater Resources Assessment Centre (IGRAC) (
Scientific community
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#SDGAction50252
    Description
    Description

    Groundwater management is very dependent on the local context: the hydrogeology, the level of development and the specific challenges of an aquifer. At the same time, national and international policies also have an impact on groundwater management. For instance, a large part of groundwater abstraction and contamination is embedded in goods and services that are internationally traded (virtual groundwater). Therefore, there is a need for groundwater data and information to be produced and shared at all levels, including at the regional and global levels. Unfortunately, regional and global groundwater datasets are currently limited. This has to do with the limited availability of in-situ groundwater data, such as borehole data and monitoring data, in particular in low-income countries, and with the limited sharing of existing data.

    As a UNESCO and WMO-affiliated centre, IGRAC is committed to produce global groundwater datasets and to provide an unrestricted access to these data, according to open data principles put forth by UNESCO Recommendation on Open Science (2021) and WMO Unified Data Policy Resolution (2021). These datasets will offer a reliable basis for regional and global assessments of groundwater resources, groundwater management, and the socio-economic and environmental processes involving groundwater. Among others, these datasets will support the reporting on SDG water indicators 6.3.2, 6.4.2 and 6.5.2. Open groundwater datasets will also improve the transparency and the inclusiveness of decision-making (indicators 16.6, 16.7 and 16.10).

    Regional and global datasets will rely on in-situ or expert knowledge, not on modelling or earth observations as it is often the case with global datasets. Data will be collected from governmental institutions, literature reviews (also including grey literature), as well as national and regional experts. This will require intensive and ongoing efforts. One particular challenge will be to engage with data-owning institutions and convince them to disclose the data. Original references of the data will be captured in the datasets for the sake of ownership and transparency. All datasets will be made available for visualization and download in IGRAC’s data sharing platform, the Global Groundwater Information System (GGIS): https://ggis.un-igrac.org/

    Expected Impact

    This patient work of data collection, compilation and dissemination will prove useful for a wide range of applications and users who are in need of such regional and global groundwater datasets. The primary use of groundwater data will be to support the reporting of SDG indicators, in particular indicators 6.3.2, 6.4.2 and 6.5.2. More generally, regional and global datasets will allow a wide range of regional and global assessments, not only of groundwater resources and their management, but also of socio-economic and environmental issues where groundwater is entangled. As such, they will promote the integration of groundwater into global and regional societal questions (e.g. climate change, economic development, health, food security, migrations), which is currently lacking. Regional groundwater datasets will also support cooperation between countries in transboundary aquifers and river/lake basins. Moreover, global datasets will support global hydrologic models, as well as satellite-based assessments (e.g. GRACE), which require more groundwater data than what is currently available for calibration and testing. Furthermore, our efforts will hopefully inspire data-owning institutions and organizations to adopt open data policies.

    Partners

    Funding partner: Dutch government
    Institutional partners: WMO and UNESCO
    Collaborating partners: Data-owning institutions, in particular public authorities in charge of groundwater data collection and management, and groundwater research institutions.

    Additional information

    Goal 6

    Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

    Goal 6

    6.1

    By 2030, achieve universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all

    6.1.1

    Proportion of population using safely managed drinking water services

    6.2

    By 2030, achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations

    6.2.1

    Proportion of population using (a) safely managed sanitation services and (b) a hand-washing facility with soap and water

    6.3

    By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally

    6.3.1

    Proportion of domestic and industrial wastewater flows safely treated

    6.3.2

    Proportion of bodies of water with good ambient water quality

    6.4

    By 2030, substantially increase water-use efficiency across all sectors and ensure sustainable withdrawals and supply of freshwater to address water scarcity and substantially reduce the number of people suffering from water scarcity
    6.4.1

    Change in water-use efficiency over time

    6.4.2

    Level of water stress: freshwater withdrawal as a proportion of available freshwater resources

    6.5

    By 2030, implement integrated water resources management at all levels, including through transboundary cooperation as appropriate

    6.5.1

    Degree of integrated water resources management 

    6.5.2

    Proportion of transboundary basin area with an operational arrangement for water cooperation

    6.6

    By 2020, protect and restore water-related ecosystems, including mountains, forests, wetlands, rivers, aquifers and lakes
    6.6.1

    Change in the extent of water-related ecosystems over time

    6.a

    By 2030, expand international cooperation and capacity-building support to developing countries in water- and sanitation-related activities and programmes, including water harvesting, desalination, water efficiency, wastewater treatment, recycling and reuse technologies
    6.a.1

    Amount of water- and sanitation-related official development assistance that is part of a government-coordinated spending plan

    6.b

    Support and strengthen the participation of local communities in improving water and sanitation management

    6.b.1

    Proportion of local administrative units with established and operational policies and procedures for participation of local communities in water and sanitation management

    Goal 16

    Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

    Goal 16

    16.1

    Significantly reduce all forms of violence and related death rates everywhere

    16.1.1
    Number of victims of intentional homicide per 100,000 population, by sex and age
    16.1.2
    Conflict-related deaths per 100,000 population, by sex, age and cause
    16.1.3

    Proportion of population subjected to (a) physical violence, (b) psychological violence and/or (c) sexual violence in the previous 12 months

    16.1.4

    Proportion of population that feel safe walking alone around the area they live after dark

    16.2

    End abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children

    16.2.1

    Proportion of children aged 1–17 years who experienced any physical punishment and/or psychological aggression by caregivers in the past month

    16.2.2
    Number of victims of human trafficking per 100,000 population, by sex, age and form of exploitation
    16.2.3

    Proportion of young women and men aged 18–29 years who experienced sexual violence by age 18

    16.3

    Promote the rule of law at the national and international levels and ensure equal access to justice for all

    16.3.1

    Proportion of victims of (a) physical, (b) psychological and/or (c) sexual violence in the previous 12 months who reported their victimization to competent authorities or other officially recognized conflict resolution mechanisms

    16.3.2
    Unsentenced detainees as a proportion of overall prison population
    16.3.3

    Proportion of the population who have experienced a dispute in the past two years and who accessed a formal or informal dispute resolution mechanism, by type of mechanism

    16.4

    By 2030, significantly reduce illicit financial and arms flows, strengthen the recovery and return of stolen assets and combat all forms of organized crime

    16.4.1
    Total value of inward and outward illicit financial flows (in current United States dollars)
    16.4.2
    Proportion of seized, found or surrendered arms whose illicit origin or context has been traced or established by a competent authority in line with international instruments

    16.5

    Substantially reduce corruption and bribery in all their forms

    16.5.1
    Proportion of persons who had at least one contact with a public official and who paid a bribe to a public official, or were asked for a bribe by those public officials, during the previous 12 months
    16.5.2
    Proportion of businesses that had at least one contact with a public official and that paid a bribe to a public official, or were asked for a bribe by those public officials during the previous 12 months

    16.6

    Develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels

    16.6.1
    Primary government expenditures as a proportion of original approved budget, by sector (or by budget codes or similar)
    16.6.2

    Proportion of population satisfied with their last experience of public services

    16.7

    Ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels

    16.7.1

    Proportions of positions in national and local institutions, including (a) the legislatures; (b) the public service; and (c) the judiciary, compared to national distributions, by sex, age, persons with disabilities and population groups

    16.7.2
    Proportion of population who believe decision-making is inclusive and responsive, by sex, age, disability and population group

    16.8

    Broaden and strengthen the participation of developing countries in the institutions of global governance

    16.8.1

    Proportion of members and voting rights of developing countries in international organizations

    16.9

    By 2030, provide legal identity for all, including birth registration

    16.9.1
    Proportion of children under 5 years of age whose births have been registered with a civil authority, by age

    16.10

    Ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with national legislation and international agreements

    16.10.1
    Number of verified cases of killing, kidnapping, enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention and torture of journalists, associated media personnel, trade unionists and human rights advocates in the previous 12 months
    16.10.2
    Number of countries that adopt and implement constitutional, statutory and/or policy guarantees for public access to information

    16.a

    Strengthen relevant national institutions, including through international cooperation, for building capacity at all levels, in particular in developing countries, to prevent violence and combat terrorism and crime

    16.a.1
    Existence of independent national human rights institutions in compliance with the Paris Principles

    16.b

    Promote and enforce non-discriminatory laws and policies for sustainable development

    16.b.1
    Proportion of population reporting having personally felt discriminated against or harassed in the previous 12 months on the basis of a ground of discrimination prohibited under international human rights law
    Name Description
    By the end of 2023, all data in the Global Groundwater Information System (GGIS) have been made open, including the monitoring data compiled under the Global Groundwater Monitoring Network (GGMN).
    By the end of 2027, the Global Groundwater Monitoring Network (GGMN) has been updated with monitoring data from all the countries willing to share their data. An updated overview of national groundwater monitoring networks has also been made..
    By the end of 2027, the Global Country Dataset has been updated, containing data about groundwater resources and their management in each country. Data cover for example groundwater abstraction per sector and groundwater legislation.
    By the end of 2027, other open global datasets have been developed and updated, such as the global inventory of transboundary aquifers and the global inventory of Managed Aquifer Recharge.
    Staff / Technical expertise
    IGRAC will dedicate 2 FTE to the development, update and maintenance of open datasets and the data sharing platform (GGIS)
    In-kind contribution
    IGRAC will cover the software development and maintenance costs of the data sharing platform (GGIS)
    Title Progress Status Submitted
    Produce and disseminate open, global groundwater datasets - Tue, 06/18/2024 - 10:37 On track
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    Timeline
    01 January 2023 (start date)
    31 December 2027 (date of completion)
    Entity
    International Groundwater Resources Assessment Centre (IGRAC)
    SDGs
    Region
    1. Global
    Other beneficiaries

    People and organizations engaged in policy-making at the global and regional levels.

    More information
    Countries
    Netherlands
    Netherlands
    Contact Information