WATER STORAGE AND CLIMATE-CHANGE IN GREAT-BRITAIN - THE ROLE OF GROUNDWATER

It is well known that there is a gradient in average effective rainfal l across Great Britain from the north west to the south east. the last 20 years have brought some remarkable variations in the rainfall patt ern. In broad terms these have resulted either in exaggeration of the gradient or in short-term reductions in rainfall across the entire isl and. These variations are at least partly in line with predictions of climate change, which also suggest that there will be increased season ality in effective rainfall. It is less well known that there is a gra dient of water storage which is approximately the reverse of the rainf all gradient, with most storage in the aquifers of the south and east. This is why, in nationwide droughts, it is usually the north and west that suffer the greatest problems with water supplies, despite their lower demand; at these times, transfer of water to the south east is n ot an option. If the climate-change predictions prove correct, Britain will need to make much greater use of this groundwater storage.