Summary

Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) is one of the few techniques that allows for the increase of water resources during dry periods. In a world with a changing climate, where dry periods will become more frequent and extreme, providing water for multiple social, economic, and environmental purposes is a priority. As such, water is one of the common social challenges in national, European, and global projects. MAR is a system that intentionally promotes the infiltration of water into aquifers to generate the accumulation of groundwater reserves. The shift from surface water to groundwater has several essential advantages: reduction of losses due to evaporation, increased storage in aquifer systems, and reduction of the need for high-cost and high-impact infrastructure such as dams. The normal properties of groundwater emerge here as strategic advantages, such as slow flow (allowing for storage during dry periods with a long-term perspective), the ability to filter water (improving its quality and reducing the presence of microorganisms), and the ubiquity of water in aquifers (easy access to water where needed through drilling), generating a nature-based solution to address the numerous problems identified by strategic research plans. However, MAR is not as common as expected due to the lack of detailed knowledge of its impacts on aquifers, the presence of outdated regulations, and social mistrust. This project aims to use the latest advances in hydrogeology to develop innovative and exportable methodologies for the application of Managed Aquifer Recharge, a powerful tool for resilience against climate change. Through the implementation of two experimental plots, we will contribute to generating knowledge in some of the critical research gaps for the application of MAR.