Pakistan has world’s second-most overstressed aquifer system

Pakistan is facing a growing water and food security crisis as groundwater extraction continues to exceed natural replenishment, putting the country’s agriculture, public health and economic stability at risk. An estimated 1.5 million or more tubewells are contributing to the problem, with limited regulation allowing excessive pumping across the country.

A report by the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE), titled Pakistan’s Groundwater Crisis: Policy Lessons and a Framework for Sustainable Resource Use, states that Pakistan extracts around 65 cubic kilometres of groundwater annually, while natural recharge stands at approximately 55 cubic kilometres. This growing gap has made the country the world’s fourth-largest groundwater user and left it with the second-most overstressed aquifer system globally.

Groundwater has become essential to Pakistan’s daily life and economic activity. Nearly 60 per cent of irrigation, more than 70 per cent of drinking water supplies and almost all industrial operations depend on underground water resources. Continued depletion could therefore disrupt agricultural production, threaten drinking water supplies and increase pressure on industries.

The report also highlights serious concerns about water quality. An estimated 70 to 80 per cent of groundwater across the country is unsafe for consumption. Arsenic contamination poses a potential threat to as many as 60 million people, while rising salinity has affected around 21 per cent of irrigated land.

According to the study, Pakistan’s groundwater crisis is not simply the result of insufficient water resources. Weak policies, poor regulation and ineffective management have contributed significantly to the problem. Although the country has substantial underground water storage capacity, groundwater management has received less attention than the planning and development of surface-water resources.

Government policies have also encouraged excessive extraction. Subsidised electricity for tubewells has reduced the cost of pumping water, while support for water-intensive crops, particularly rice and sugarcane, has increased pressure on aquifers. Punjab accounts for approximately 90 per cent of Pakistan’s total groundwater extraction, making the province central to efforts to control depletion.

The consequences are becoming increasingly visible in major urban and agricultural centres. Water tables in areas including Lahore, Quetta and Karachi are reportedly falling by one to three feet annually. Continued declines could make groundwater increasingly expensive to access and deepen existing challenges for households, farmers and businesses.

Pakistan also faces an international dimension to the crisis. The report identifies the country as the world’s largest exporter of groundwater depletion embedded in agricultural and industrial goods. Products such as rice, leather and textiles rely on water resources used during production. Pakistan reportedly accounts for 29 per cent of global trade in goods produced using overexploited aquifers, highlighting how domestic water shortages are linked to export-oriented economic activity.

To address the situation, PIDE has proposed a phased programme of reforms. In the immediate term, spanning the next two years, it recommends introducing licensing and metering for groundwater extraction points, reviewing electricity subsidies that encourage excessive pumping, and establishing a National Groundwater Council to improve coordination between federal and provincial authorities.

Over the medium term, the report calls for reforms to agricultural water charges, known as abiana, to reflect water scarcity. It also recommends encouraging farmers to shift towards less water-intensive crops and establishing a National Aquifer Mapping Programme to improve monitoring of groundwater reserves.

Long-term measures include separating traditional water rights from land ownership, investing in managed aquifer recharge and wastewater treatment, and incorporating groundwater management into regional transboundary water frameworks.

The report warns that continued overexploitation could cause lasting damage to Pakistan’s economic resilience, public health and ability to adapt to climate change. Without effective regulation, coordinated policymaking and sustainable agricultural practices, the country risks exhausting a resource on which millions of people and major economic sectors depend.