Soil and climate scientists expect that by 2100, the average groundwater temperature will be 2.1 degrees higher than it was at the beginning of the 21st century.
Nature Geoscience magazine indicates that, according to scientists, this rise in temperature will have a serious impact on water resources and the vital activity of soil organisms.
“Soils contain the largest amount of fresh water on Earth, making groundwater essential for life to survive,” scientists say. “Our calculations show that groundwater temperatures will rise by 2.1 degrees Celsius by 2100. As a result, by the end of the century about 588 people will live.” million people in areas where groundwater cannot be consumed due to the sharp rise in temperatures.”
Scientists reached these conclusions from their study of how global warming affects heat transfer within the upper layers of soil, as well as in groundwater. For this purpose, they studied and analyzed how the average temperatures of global aquifers changed during the years 2000-2020.
Scientists have used these results to develop a global climate model that allows tracking the process of thermal energy accumulation in the soil and determining how its temperature will change with increasing global warming. Using this model, they calculated how soil and groundwater temperatures would change by the end of the century, depending on how effectively humanity combats climate change.
Scientists' calculations showed that the average temperature of the upper layer of groundwater will rise by 2.1 degrees Celsius by the end of the century if humanity effectively reduces the volume of greenhouse gases emitted, and by 3.5 degrees Celsius if emissions increase at the current level. Both increases will significantly accelerate the metabolism of soil microbes, as well as accelerate the entry of heavy metal ions and other potentially dangerous contaminants into groundwater.
In addition, scientists' calculations show that the average groundwater temperature will rise in many tropical regions of the world, including parts of Africa, the Middle East and Western Australia, to 34 degrees Celsius or more. According to them, this will significantly complicate access to fresh drinking water for the 588 million people who will live in these areas of the world at the end of the century.
Something must be done about global warming.
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