When we think about water, we often picture rivers, lakes, or storm‑filled skies. But one of the nation’s most important water resources lies out of sight, beneath our feet. Groundwater supplies drinking water for millions of people; supports agriculture and industry; and sustains rivers, wetlands, and ecosystems, yet it is often overlooked until wells run dry or contamination is discovered.
The Growing Challenge Beneath the Surface
Across much of the United States, groundwater is being pumped faster than it can naturally recharge. A 2023 New York Times data investigation reported that nearly half of U.S. groundwater monitoring sites showed significant long-term declines, indicating that pumping has exceeded natural replenishment in large portions of the country. Population growth, agricultural demand, prolonged drought, and climate change have placed increasing pressure on aquifers, particularly in the western states. Unlike surface water shortages, which are immediately apparent when reservoirs drop, groundwater decline often occurs slowly and silently, making monitoring vital for early detection and mitigation.
As groundwater levels fall, communities may experience higher pumping costs, land subsidence demonstrated by the gradual sinking of the ground surface, reduced water reliability, and impacts to interconnected surface waters and ecosystems. In some regions, groundwater overdraft limits future development and agricultural productivity, underscoring the need for long-term, sustainable management. In parts of the western United States, groundwater overdraft has already constrained growth and production, prompting limits on new housing development in central Arizona where aquifers cannot meet long‑term demand and reducing irrigated acreage and crop yields in regions such as California’s Central Valley and the High Plains as pumping exceeds recharge.
Experts, including hydrogeologists, engineers, and water planners, are working with public agencies and interested parties to understand aquifer conditions, quantify trends, and develop science-based strategies to address groundwater decline. Sustainable groundwater management requires sound data and thoughtful planning that balances current needs with long-term resilience.
Water Quality Matters as Much as Supply
Water quality is another major challenge related to groundwater supply. Across the country, communities are grappling with groundwater contamination, from a range of industrial and agricultural pollutants to emerging contaminants such as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), often referred to as “forever chemicals.” A recent U.S. Geological Survey Analysis found that tens of millions of Americans rely on groundwater supplies affected by contamination, particularly in areas served by private wells and shallow aquifers, underscoring the widespread nature of the challenge.
In agricultural regions, contaminants like nitrates, which are commonly associated with fertilizer use, remain one of the most widespread groundwater quality concerns. Other contaminants, such as 1,2,3-tricholoropropane (123-TCP), a chemical formerly used in certain fumigants and industrial applications, continue to affect drinking water supplies long after their use has ceased. Because groundwater moves slowly through subsurface soils and rock, contaminants can persist for decades, posing long-term risks to drinking water supplies.
Groundwater contamination can persist for decades, making early detection and informed management critical.
“Groundwater contamination is especially challenging because it often goes undetected for years,” explains Principal Hydrologist Matt Naftaly, PG, PH. “Addressing contaminants like PFAS requires a clear understanding of subsurface conditions, careful monitoring, and remediation strategies that protect public health while accounting for the realities of how groundwater systems behave.”
In Southern California and other desert southwest communities, salt (total dissolved solids) accumulation in groundwater basins is an ongoing challenge. The challenge is especially pronounced in closed or semi-closed basins, where salts enter the groundwater system faster than they can leave. Salt management within groundwater basins increasingly relies on an integrated combination of basin-scale planning, advanced treatment technologies, and regional brine disposal infrastructure.
Key infrastructure includes groundwater desalination facilities using reverse osmosis (RO) or electrodialysis reversal (EDR) to remove dissolved salts from degraded aquifers, with concentrated brine conveyed through regional disposal systems. These brine disposal networks remove up to 500,000 pounds of salt per day from local groundwater basins, thereby extending the water supply to these communities.
Engineering Practice Director Mike Metts, PE said, “Regional brine conveyance systems represent far more than just pipelines for brine disposal, they are multi-benefit regional systems that enable potable water production, while supporting water recycling, industrial discharge management, and long-term protection of inland groundwater basins.”
Protecting groundwater quality is essential to public health, environmental justice, and community resilience. Effective solutions require careful investigation, monitoring, and remediation planning, along with a clear understanding of regulatory requirements.
Groundwater challenges are being addressed through coordinated efforts that include site investigation, contaminant fate‑and‑transport modeling, remediation planning, and compliance monitoring. By interpreting complex hydrogeologic data into actionable insights, practitioners help public agencies and communities understand risks, meet regulatory requirements, and make informed decisions to protect clean water sources today while planning for the future.
Turning Today’s Groundwater into Tomorrow’s Supply
One of the most promising tools for addressing groundwater depletion is managed aquifer recharge (MAR). Recharge projects intentionally capture water, often during wet years or storm events, and store it underground for later use during dry periods. This approach can include recharge basins, infiltration galleries, aquifer storage and recovery systems, and groundwater banking programs.
Capturing water during wet years can strengthen groundwater supplies for dry ones.
Managed aquifer recharge offers multiple benefits. It increases groundwater storage, reduces reliance on imported water, mitigates flood risk, and improves drought resilience. When designed thoughtfully, recharge projects can also enhance water quality through natural filtration processes in soil and aquifers. Unesco’s Global Inventory of Managed Aquifer Recharge catalogs more than 1,200 sites where MAR has been implemented.
By evaluating how water moves through aquifers and how recharge projects interact with existing groundwater systems, communities can maximize benefits while minimizing unintended impacts.
Lessons from California’s Groundwater Management Efforts
For decades, groundwater in California was largely managed out of sight and out of mind, quietly sustaining communities, agriculture, and ecosystems, but with few statewide safeguards to ensure its long‑term reliability. “California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) has revolutionized water resource management in a state prone to all of the challenges facing water supplies in the US,” shares Principal Hydrogeologist Jill Weinberger, PhD, PG. SGMA requires local agencies to develop and implement Groundwater Sustainability Plans (GSPs) that bring basins into balance over time. While the challenges are significant, SGMA has driven unprecedented collaboration, data collection, and investment in groundwater solutions.
The lesson emerging from SGMA is relevant far beyond California: Groundwater sustainability works best when science, policy, and community priorities are aligned.
Dudek has been involved in SGMA implementation since its earliest days, preparing and supporting some of the state’s first approved GSPs, including work in critically overdrafted basins. That early leadership includes guiding the development of plans for the Fox Canyon Groundwater Management Agency in Ventura County, covering the Oxnard, Pleasant Valley, and Las Posas Valley basins—some of the state’s most complex and critically overdrafted groundwater systems.
The plans were developed through a multiyear, highly transparent process that combined rigorous hydrogeologic analysis with extensive coordination with agency staff, technical advisory committees, and interested parties, and these plans have since advanced into implementation and periodic evaluation. Dudek continues to assist agencies with SGMA implementation, project planning, monitoring, and community engagement, helping translate policy requirements into practical, locally tailored solutions.
Advancing Water Equity Through Community‑Centered Solutions
Groundwater challenges do not affect all communities equally. Rural, underrepresented, frontline, and tribal communities have faced water supply and water quality challenges for decades, and many members of these communities do not have access to safe, clean, and affordable water for drinking and sanitation. These challenges include contaminated wells, failing water systems, limited access to decision makers, and underinvestment. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), between 20% and 70% of the U.S. land area has experienced abnormally dry conditions at any given time over the past two decades, placing additional strain on already vulnerable groundwater-dependent communities. Addressing groundwater sustainability requires an equity‑focused approach that ensures all communities have access to safe, reliable water.
“For many rural, underrepresented, frontline, and Tribal communities, groundwater contamination and challenges are part of everyday life,” says Regional Planner Jane Gray. “Sustainable solutions start by listening to communities, understanding their specific risks and constraints, and ensuring they have a meaningful voice in decisions that affect their access to clean and affordable water and support water security.”
Sustainable groundwater management works best when all communities have a voice.
Dudek is committed to advancing water equity through technical assistance, outreach, and engagement that centers community needs and voices. Through its work on the Underrepresented Communities, California Tribes, and Small Farmers Groundwater Technical Assistance (URCTA) Program, Dudek partnered with tribes, small water systems, and underrepresented communities to address water challenges by identifying risks, building capacity, and developing fundable, implementation-ready projects. The URCTA Program focused on providing hands-on support tailored to community priorities, helping translate planning into action and strengthening long‑term water resilience.
Looking Ahead: A Shared Responsibility
Protecting groundwater is a shared responsibility. Sustainable groundwater management requires long‑term thinking, interdisciplinary collaboration, and a willingness to invest in solutions that may not always be visible but are essential to our collective future.
Dudek supports sustainable groundwater management through integrated hydrogeologic analysis, monitoring, modeling, and regulatory compliance services. Our team works with public agencies, water managers, and communities to support GSPs, assess basin conditions, and implement science‑based solutions that protect water resources for future generations.
Explore Dudek’s groundwater sustainability planning and implementation work or contact us to learn more.
About the Experts
- Matt Naftaly, PG, PH, is a principal hydrologist with more than 30 years of experience in groundwater management, surface water allocation, and drought response. He supports SGMA implementation as a project manager and technical expert, while assisting state agencies in delivering hydrogeologic services to tribal and underrepresented communities. Matt brings deep technical expertise and a proven ability to build consensus among diverse interested parties.
- Michael Metts, PE, is a principal engineer and manager of engineering services with more than 40 years of experience in civil engineering and is a registered professional engineer in California. His expertise spans water, wastewater, and recycled water planning, design, permitting, and construction management across the southwestern United States. Michael is known for anticipating project challenges, maintaining clear client communication, and delivering cost‑effective, innovative solutions on complex infrastructure projects.
- Jill Weinberger, PhD, PG, is a principal hydrogeologist with more than 20 years of experience in groundwater supply and development, water resource management, and groundwater contamination. She supports water districts and agencies statewide with groundwater sustainability plan preparation and implementation, bringing deep technical expertise in aquifer recharge, surface water–groundwater interactions, seawater intrusion, and climate-driven water demand. Her background spans complex inland and coastal systems, as well as marine hydrogeology research.
- Jane Gray is a regional planner, environmental specialist, and project director with more than 20 years of experience in water and wastewater planning, environmental permitting, land use planning, and grant development. She has led projects across the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, from infrastructure planning in developing economies to residential and commercial development throughout California. Jane is known for her collaborative approach, technical depth, and ability to navigate complex and often contentious planning challenges to achieve consensus-driven outcomes.