TITLE:
Karst Groundwater Management through Science and Education
AUTHORS:
Fang Guo, Guanghui Jiang
KEYWORDS:
Karst Groundwater, Management, Education, Lingshui Spring
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Geology,
Vol.1 No.3,
October
24,
2011
ABSTRACT: In Southwestern China, karst covers an area of 540,000 km2, and supports a population of approximately 100 million people. This groundwater can easily become highly polluted without effective management. Sound management of karst areas requires the conscientious participation of citizens including homeowners, planners, government officials, farmers and other land-use decision makers. Lingshui Spring was a good example. A series of educational materials were developed and delivered to the local government, residents, and students. A groundwater polluted accident was tracked as a natural tracer test in a spring to increase understanding of the vulnerability of the area’s karst aquifer. More than 200 people attended the communication and training course on groundwater protection and environmental justice law. Several efforts have appeared as a result, such as a proposal for Lingshui water resources protection that was put forward for the first time by Wuming county political consultative conference.