Water extraction (also known as water withdrawal, water abstraction, and water intake) is the process of taking water from any source, either temporarily or permanently, for flood control or to obtain water for purposes such as irrigation.
Depending on the environmental legislation in the country, controls may be placed on extraction to limit the amount of water that can be removed. The over-extraction of water can lead to dry rivers or declining groundwater levels.
The science of hydrogeology is used to determine safe water extraction levels. Water can go through dams that are used to regulate or stop water from coming though, creating hydroelectricity.
Effects of overextraction
Saltwater intrusion
Groundwater contamination
Groundwater contamination of water is seen vastly through the high needs of irrigation, drinking, and to support organic life. Keeping contaminants at a minimum is at a high demand and treated using arsenic, chloride and other chemicals to extract the pollutants. Humans can be a direct cause of these pollutants through over-extraction.
Certain leading causes for groundwater contamination comes from lowering water tables due to the over-extraction of water and the water table not being able to recharge as quickly as needed. With this being said, polluted water from the surface (rivers and streams), makes its way into the groundwater more quickly and easily and results in a water quality problem due to the surface water pollution. Mining, farming and industrial activities contribute to water pollution, in particular where "countries lacking adequate regulation or controls".[Pope Francis, Laudato si', paragraph 29, published on 24 May 2015, accessed on 2 October 2025]
Land subsidence
Land subsidence is another effect linked to the over-extraction of groundwater. When large amounts of groundwater is extracted from aquifers beneath, surrounding areas above. When water from the aquifer is extracted at a large amount, the sediment, certain rock types, is separated due to the lack of water being used to make sure the sediment stays tightly together. The over-extraction of groundwater is a human caused activity that causes these ground failures that create pore spaces where water once was occupying. The sudden sinking of the soils surface causes infrastructure damage and a higher risk of flood damage due to the displacement of the Earth's surface.
Groundwater extraction laws
Groundwater laws detail rights relating to water extraction and water withdrawal from aquifers.
United Kingdom
In England, anyone wishing to withdraw more than 20
of water per day, either from a river or an aquifer, must first obtain an abstraction licence from the Environment Agency. The licensing regime was introduced in the 1960s and by the time the government's White Paper on Water was put forward in 2011, it had been recognised that the rules were no longer fit for purpose.
[House of Commons, Environment Food and Rural Affairs Committee, The Water White Paper, published on 5 July 2012, accessed on 2 October 2025]
United States
In the United States, much of the groundwater that is mainly withdrawn or extracted from aquifers consist of primarily irrigation towards the southwest and the west, with close to 85 to 90% of available water withdrawn.
[Bagley, E. S., Water Rights Law and Public Policies Relating to Ground Water "Mining" in the Southwestern States, The Journal of Law and Economics
]
accessed on 2 October 2025
With an expected increase of the demand of water for domestic usage in the future, systems are to be regulated and land rights vary on the consumption of groundwater rights. When requirements have not been met through the water extraction, US states control water resources and take steps on authorization of the requirements for groups of individuals or corporations.
See also
Further reading
