Groundwater in a future climate: The CLIWAT Handbook

Abstract

This handbook is a product of the CLIWAT project (CLImate change and groundWATer) highlighting the main results and recommendations of the project for planners and practitioners at local, regional and national levels. CLIWAT is a transnational project in the North Sea region dealing with groundwater mapping and adaptive planning and solutions for the coming challenges caused by climate change. The project aims at bridging EU-science and policy on climate change impact and adaptation in the North Sea Region at a practical level. The research and analysis covers a broad spectrum of geoscience and focuses on gaining a better understanding of the effects of climate change on the quantity and quality of groundwater. The project started in September 2008 and ends in March 2012. The project involves sixteen partners from Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark. The handbook is complimented by a number of scientific papers from all pilot areas in a special issue of the on-line journal “Hydrology and Earth System Sciences” with the title “Assessing the impact of climate change for adaptive water management in coastal regions”.