26 November 2014: The International Groundwater Resources Assessment Centre (IGRAC), a joint UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and World Meteorological Organization (WMO) initiative, launched the #HiddenResource campaign with a video titled ‘Groundwater, the Hidden Resource’.

Groundwater makes up 50% of the water used every day around the world, according to the video. It highlights that, in some areas, groundwater use is even higher. In Mexico City, for instance, groundwater composes 95% of water for all uses while 99% of Denmark’s drinking water comes from the ground.

The video stresses that groundwater is a hidden phenomenon, in part due to the lack of data on groundwater, both in terms of the impacts of surface water variability and the impacts of pollutants, which makes it difficult to use groundwater resources sustainably. The video concludes with a call for “informed action based on sound research” to ensure the sustainability of groundwater resources into the future. [IGRAC Video] [UNESCO Press Release]