Groundwater Explorer: Will the Well Run Dry?
See groundwater as a store that rain fills through the soil and pumping empties, and discover why paving and over-pumping lower the water table until wells fail.
Before you try
What if a town paved every road and rooftop? Where would the rain go, and what would happen to its wells?
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What happened?
Move a control to see what changes and why.
One simple aquifer with rounded storage and drainage rates and a monsoon-type rainfall pattern; real aquifers differ by rock type.
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Try these ideas
- Run one year with the defaults and note the highest and lowest water table.
- Pave 80% of the ground. How much less does the monsoon recharge?
- Double the pumping. In which month does the well first go dry?
Why it works
Rain that soaks into the ground trickles down until it fills the gaps between grains of rock and soil. The top of that water-filled zone is the water table; the rock holding the water is an aquifer. A well is simply a hole down into it. In the monsoon the table rises as recharge beats drainage; in the dry months pumping and seepage to rivers pull it down again.
India pumps more groundwater than any other country, and in Punjab, Haryana and parts of the south the table drops year on year. This simulator lets you change the monsoon strength, the share of paved ground, the pumping rate and the depth of your well, run the months, and see when the well goes dry. Rainwater harvesting and recharge ponds are the fixes it points to.
Check your understanding
Question 1 of 4
The water table is
Paving a town lowers its water table because
A well goes dry when
Which action raises the water table over time?
Explain it in your own words
What changed? Why did it happen? Where might you notice this in everyday life?
For parents & teachers
- Find out where your home’s water comes from and how deep the local wells are.
- Ask: why do old wells in cities dry up even though rainfall has not changed?
- Design a rooftop rainwater harvesting system for your school.