What is "overdrafting"

Overdrafting is the process of extracting groundwater beyond the safe yield or equilibrium yield of the aquifer.

Since every groundwater basin recharges at a different rate depending upon precipitation, vegetative cover and soil conservation practises, the quantity of groundwater that can be safely pumped varies greatly among regions of the world and even within provinces. Some aquifers require a very long time to recharge and thus the process of overdrafting can have consequences of effectively drying up certain sub-surface water supplies. Subsidence occurs when excessive groundwater is extracted from rocks that support more weight when saturated. This can lead to a capacity reduction in the aquifer.

Groundwater is the fresh water that can be found underground, it is also one of the largest sources. Groundwater depletion can be comparable to ¨money in a bank¨, The primary cause of groundwater depletion is pumping or the excessive pulling up of groundwater from underground aquifers.