Guaraní Aquifer, a colossal freshwater reserve

Abstract

The Guaraní Aquifer is considered the third largest freshwater reserve in the world. It covers an area of approximately 1,194,000 km² and is located beneath part of the territories of Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay. In total, around 24 million people live in the Guaraní Aquifer System territory. The terrain consists of a series of sandstones below ground level, between 50 and 1,500 meters thick. The most permeable rocks began to fill with filtered water from the surface. Although this process began 20,000 years ago, it is still ongoing. It is estimated that the Guaraní Aquifer holds approximately 30,000 cubic kilometers of fresh water.

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