Phys.Org - Findings show the Northern Territory's vital water source is drying—and it can be seen from space
“These declines correlate with increased extraction following the approval of large irrigation licenses near Mataranka in 2013, and are concerning given recent development of fracking sites in the Beetaloo Basin, which will also draw upon the aquifer.”
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This article from Phys.Org highlights concerning new research showing that the Cambrian Limestone Aquifer (CLA) — one of the Northern Territory’s (Australia) most vital water sources — is drying at an accelerating pace, with the losses visible from space. The CLA is a vast, interconnected limestone system containing high-quality groundwater that sustains Northern Territory (NT) rivers, Indigenous communities, towns, pastoral operations and irrigated agriculture.
A Griffith University-led study, published in Ecological Informatics, analyzed two decades of data from 2002–2022, combining borehole monitoring records from the Bureau of Meteorology with remote sensing from multiple satellites, including NASA’s GRACE mission. While the aquifer’s water levels remained stable until 2013, the research found a sharp decline in groundwater and surface water features — such as springs and wetlands — from 2011 to 2022.
These declines correlate with increased water extraction following the 2013 approval of large irrigation licenses near Mataranka, and more recently, with new fracking developments in the Beetaloo Basin that also draw on the aquifer. Researchers noted that recovery times after dry periods have lengthened dramatically — from under five months in 2014 to more than 15 months by 2021 — despite fewer severe droughts in the last decade.
The study warns that without stronger groundwater regulation, continued agricultural and gas sector expansion could push the CLA toward over-depletion, threatening ecosystems and communities dependent on it. Importantly, the research also demonstrates how satellite-based monitoring can address critical data gaps, providing regulators with tools to detect and respond to early signs of water stress.
While the Northern Territory’s aquifer challenges are region-specific, they mirror a global pattern of groundwater decline driven by overuse and climate pressures. In Canada, where large portions of our freshwater reserves are stored underground, the Canada1Water (C1W) project provides a critical national-scale perspective on groundwater dynamics. By integrating hydrological, land surface, and climate models across the country, C1W helps identify vulnerabilities in our water systems. With the majority of Canada’s freshwater stored belowground, C1W provides a national-scale framework for sustainable water management, offering insights that can guide policy, improve agricultural planning and ensure long-term water security in the face of an increasingly uncertain future.