Groundwater
In the Netherlands every year 1.674 million m³ groundwater is pumped up. 563 million m³ is used by households, 525 million m³ by industries and 450 million m³ in agriculture. The yearly replenishment is 2.615 million m³. The amount that can be extracted is approximately 1.900 million m³. In the lower parts of the Netherlands hardly any freshwater can be extracted, because salt or brackish water will come up. The dunes, where drinking water always has been extracted, are an exception. The freshwater reservoirs in the dunes are artificially replenished with riverwater.
However, in the Netherlands 620.000 hectare of nature reserves are subject to drought. The groundwater table in the Netherlands has lowered 25 centimeters in the last forty years and in reallocation areas and drinking water extraction areas on average 35 cm. Incidentally drops of over 1 meter have been observed. The drops are for 20% caused by groundwater extraction for households and industries, 20% by drainage of cities and surface run-off, and 60% by agriculture, especially due to fast drainage and discharge.
Source: NRC webpages
