By ‘terrestrial’ I meant ecosystems on the island, whether they are aquatic, riparian, or whatever. I should have been more explicit and simply said ‘land-based’. True terrestrial ecosystems may be impacted because the SW-GW relationships may be changed, water tables changed, etc. This will be exacerbated if they decide to pump GW.

Near-shore ecosystems will be impacted because the SW flow into the sea will be reduced, which could cause problems to an ecosystem adjusted to a certain amount of fresh water input from the land.

As for the implications… I doubt terrestrial ecosystems will be bothered. Aquatic ecosystems and geomorphology might be, depending on what parts of the hydrograph are siphoned from and when, and where along the reaches. As for coastal ecosystems, the rain would have fallen there anyway, so it’s just the nutrients and sediment that might be lacking, and this could be ameliorated somewhat provided the material is returned to the river after being pumped into the bottling facility.

In the coming years, I think that domestic and industrial water’s overuse is going to become a leading headline and an even greater cause for public concern. Why people don’t care about it more on a private level remains a puzzle for me. Water conservation could easily usurp the importance of societal conflicts and perhaps become more salient than oil or electricity because water it the essential ingredient for survival.

I just read an article in the Boston Globe actually (I hail from New Hampshire) that was discussing the severity of the water problem. Now streams and lakes in Massachusetts have dropped significantly - to the point where fish and other vital aquatic ecosystems have all but died off (if you have any interest in reading this, just paste the link into your browser http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/06/07/in_mass_concerns_rising_on_water_overuse/ ).

Part of me wonders why conservationists have been stigmatized for standing up for something that everybody needs to survive. It’s kind of ridiculous really. I guess mankind is naturally wired to being short-sighted. Who knows if this is an evolutionary defect or what? But I’m still stymied as to why people care more about profits than proffering a healthy environment for future generations.

This said, I’m really happy to see guys like you doing what you’re doing. It shows that you don’t just believe in talk (which is cheap). The first step is getting information out there to educate people on the severity of the problem. So kudos to your great work!

Best,
Jeremy