New guide to groundwater monitoring in humanitarian contexts
A new free guide offers practical support for groundwater monitoring in humanitarian settings, with contributions from Geoscience for Global Development (GfGD).
Groundwater Monitoring in Humanitarian Contexts: A Guide for Practitioners and Decision Makers was launched at the International Water Association’s World Water Congress in Glasgow on 5 October 2026. It was produced by Groundwater Relief, Action contre la Faim and the International Groundwater Resources Assessment Centre (IGRAC).
GfGD researcher Will Veness is the guide’s lead author, and GfGD’s Elena Egidio contributed as a reviewer. GfGD is acknowledged among the partners who supported the work.
Practical guidance for water supply decisions
Groundwater can be essential to water supplies in humanitarian responses. Monitoring helps teams understand how a water source is behaving, recognise emerging problems and make better-informed decisions about its use.
The guide is intended for practitioners and decision makers, including those working with limited resources or without specialist groundwater training. It takes readers through planning and setting up monitoring, testing an approach, improving it over time and handing it over for continued use.
Practical tools, templates and case studies help connect the guidance to field settings, including Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh and north-east Syria.
The publication reflects GfGD’s work to improve understanding of, access to and capacity to use geoscience in support of sustainable development.