The precipitate growth of disasters that affect ever-increasing numbers of humanity in recent decades and the inevitable attendant crisis in the supply of drinking water has prompted UNESCO IHP to undertake a project entitled ‘Groundwater for Emergency Situations’ (GWES).

The aim of the GWES project is to consider natural catastrophic events that could adversely influence human health and life and to identify in advance emergency groundwater resources resistant to natural and man-made disasters that could replace damaged public and domestic drinking water supplies.

This Methodological Guide provides background information on groundwater protection with particular reference to its use in emergency situations as result of natural hazards and hydrological extremes. It also outlines the governance policy framework in which groundwater as an emergency resource may be integrated into overall emergency management and service provision.