Box 5C Data and information sources

The information and data in this section are based on:

The first questionnaire consisted of three forms. Form 1 requested qualitative information about toxic contamination (such as pesticides), nitrate, acidification and overexploitation for the country as a whole. Form 2 requested quantitative regional information about a) landuse and b) groundwater resources (eg, rates of groundwater abstraction and lowering of the groundwater table). The selection of regions (territorial units) to report on, within a country, were decided by the responding country itself. The landuse information asked for included: application of nitrogen and pesticides, and number of domestic animals and manure production. Form 3 requested site specific measured data for nitrate and pesticide concentration in the groundwater and groundwater level. An extended version of this questionnaire was forwarded to some countries to obtain more detailed information.

Not all countries completed and returned the questionnaires and the degree of detail of the information received varied greatly. Some countries provided only aggregated qualitative information, while other countries provided very detailed information, documented by measurements and maps. Consequently, in many cases additional information from national and regional surveys and other literature had to be used.

Especially important was information on the actual (observed) concentrations of nitrate and pesticides in groundwater, and the quantitative aspects describing use of the resource (abstractions and overexploitation). Table 5.3 summarises the sources of information used for each country in the preparation of the section on groundwater.