Published 2026-06-03 · data 2023 · percent of major aquifers assessed
A quarter of aquifers are overstressed
Groundwater buffers drought — until pumping outpaces recharge. Hotspots span India, China, and the US High Plains.
GRACE satellites watch groundwater like a bank balance — withdrawals show up as mass loss. This grid divides groundwater aquifers (2023 snapshot) into colored bands — Over-exploited / stressed and Sustainable or variable — using equal squares so you compare shares, not country size on a map.
1 cell = 0.1 percent of major aquifers assessed (0.1% of groundwater aquifers) · 1,000 cells
Context
The 2023 figures from OWID — Water stress put Sustainable or variable at 75% of groundwater aquifers and Over-exploited / stressed at 25% — about 100 percent of major aquifers assessed in this edition's rounding.
NASA GRACE / IGRAC groundwater stress estimates, rounded.
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Credit this grid as Inagrid — https://inagrid.com/e/2026-06-03-groundwater-stress