1-1 Agricultural Managed Aquifer Recharge (Ag-MAR) – A Method for Sustainable Groundwater Management

Session: Advances in Managed Aquifer Recharge

Presenting Author:

Authors:

Abstract:

More than two billion people and 40% of global agricultural production depend upon unsustainable groundwater extraction. Managed aquifer recharge (MAR), the practice of strategically recharging water to replenish groundwater storage, is an important local-scale practice for managing groundwater more sustainably. However, it is not yet reaching its full potential to counterbalance growing global groundwater demand. Agricultural managed aquifer recharge (Ag-MAR) is an emerging method for spreading large volume (flood)flows on agricultural lands and has capacity for widespread global implementation. Yet, knowledge gaps, synergies, and tradeoffs in Ag-MAR research still exist. In this presentation, we describe the practice and feasibility of spreading flood flows – one of the few physically available water sources left to legally utilize – on agricultural land to address groundwater depletion and associated undesirable results such as groundwater water quality degradation and declining groundwater levels. We will touch on the current state of research with respect to environmental impacts of Ag-MAR on water quality (e.g. nitrate, geogenic contaminants), crop response and yield, and the multidisciplinary approach needed for communication and coordination of Ag-MAR programs with stakeholders and the public. In groundwater-dependent agricultural regions, Ag-MAR provides an important approach for achieving groundwater sustainability, however, it provides one of many solutions to achieve groundwater sustainability and cannot offset the need for groundwater conservation or groundwater demand reduction.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Program. Vol. 57, No. 6, 2025

doi: 10.1130/abs/2025AM-9433

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