TITLE:
Impacts of Drought on Water Quantity and Water Quality
AUTHORS:
Sara Gutierrez Diaz, Joseph E. Quansah, Souleymane Fall, Shamim A. Begum
KEYWORDS:
Drought, Water Quality, Water Quantity, Water Management, Adaptive Options
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection,
Vol.14 No.10,
October
19,
2026
ABSTRACT: The frequency and severity of droughts are increasing globally due to adverse weather conditions and rising human water demands. Drought and the resulting water scarcity not only reduce water quantity but also directly alter water quality, affecting every dimension of freshwater systems. This literature review synthesizes current research on the effects of drought on water availability and quality across diverse hydrologic systems. It examines how drought dynamics, compounded by human activities, reduce water availability and drive physical, chemical, and biological changes-including declines in streamflow and groundwater storage, loss of hydrological connectivity, elevated water temperatures, and nutrient, contaminant, and dissolved oxygen depletion. Evidence indicates that these effects are not confined to specific systems or scales; they interact with existing anthropogenic pressures to degrade water quality and hydrological function, often persisting well beyond the drought period through lagged groundwater recovery and post-drought flushing of accumulated pollutants. Effective responses require moving beyond reactive crisis management toward integrated, long-term adaptive strategies grounded in hydrological understanding and institutional commitment. Significant knowledge gaps remain, particularly regarding post-drought recovery, the cumulative effects of repeated drought events, and the long-term trajectory of freshwater systems under projected climate change.