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The Use Of Water From Aquifers And Reservoirs Without Strict Regulations

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The drought in the western United States has been going on for nearly five years and while there are countless ways to lessen the effects, there isn’t much action being taken. If nothing is done, the supply of groundwater in the United States along with the quality of it will greatly diminish within the next few decades. In many Western states such as California, the residents haven’t been taking much notice to the situation due to their use of the use of water from aquifers and reservoirs without strict regulations. The continuous use of water from these aquifers will eventually result in empty aquifers and no fresh, potable water for residents in the affected areas and in order for a change to actually be made the people must realize what kind of situation they are actually in and that if they do not follow regulations put forth they will be in a dangerous situation. Aquifers are being tapped into in order to supplement the water not being provided naturally throughout the drought. The water being taken from these aquifers are distributed for many different uses, but the number one consumer of this water is agriculture. In the United States around 80 percent of the nation 's consumption of water goes towards agricultural purposes and in western states almost 90 percent of their water supply (USDA, 2013). If these states continue to use the groundwater from aquifers and reservoirs, such as the Ogallala, at such a high rate, roughly 70 percent of this water will be gone in

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