Water issues have long been an area of public policy concern in “water poor” western states where prior appropriation rights have been successful in placing a commercial value on water. However, in the “water rich” states in the Midwest and Northeast, water has been undervalued due to reasonable use statutes that apply no limits to water withdrawals. Because of the Clean Water Act, surface water withdrawals from lakes and rivers have received oversight, valuation, and regulation. However, as surface water scarcity grows, a new source of water is being tapped – groundwater. Many people think of groundwater as a commodity to be mined. Like minerals, groundwater is essentially a nonrenewable resource, as it takes hundreds to thousands of years to refill underground aquifers. The mining of water has far-reaching impacts on the surface above. Local wells, rivers, streams, and lakes are adversely affected as underground water supplies are tapped at unprecedented levels. In Florida, for example, spring-fed lakes are literally disappearing as their groundwater disappears.

As the marketability of bottled spring water grows, commercial bottling companies are tapping groundwater supplies. In many states, the facility gains the rights to groundwater simply by purchasing the land above it. In many cases it is impossible to conduct scientific research to further water cycle knowledge as those who are using groundwater are not required to report how much of it they take. In order to meet the need for effective planning and oversight of Maine water issues, State Representative Scott Cowger (D-Hallowell) introduced LD 1488, which became law in 2002.

For more information on how states are dealing with this issue, see SERC’s “Groundwater Withdrawal Reporting” State Activity page.

For information on requiring permits for large water withdrawals, see SERC’s “Groundwater Withdrawal Permitting” package.