Earthquake in Morocco Unleashes New Water Sources, Easing Drought Concerns

Today, "the flow of the main sources that feed the river has increased and new sources have appeared," said Mohamed, a resident of the village of Tizgha, located 80 kilometers from Ouarzazate, who marvels at a solution to the chronic water deficit that this isolated hamlet has faced for several years. "The waiting time for access to water has been reduced to three days," he said, confident that previously the inhabitants of this community-oriented locality "had to arrange among themselves for access to water every twenty days for each of the families." His wish is that this heavenly bounty will last for a long time.

How to explain this unprecedented phenomenon. According to climate and sustainable development expert Mohamed Benabbou, earthquakes and volcanoes lead to significant changes in the earth’s surface, capable of consequently causing a sharp increase in water flow, such as that observed in Ouarzazate and Taroudant, or causing its decrease, or even the drying up of existing sources and the depletion of the water stock in certain waterfalls and sources. "Underground, the geological layers contain water resources, like the limestone layers that contain a solid and dense water reservoir that can form underground water caverns. The explosion of these caverns, when subjected to high pressures, is the origin of the appearance of new water sources," he explained.

For the scientist, this is a natural phenomenon that can only be temporary before the water returns to its normal state. There are other "post-earthquake risks related to the leakage of groundwater through the faults caused by the earthquake"; he added. In other words, the problem of water stress remains. And, Morocco intends to meet the global challenge of water scarcity through the implementation of a series of water conservation measures as well as the construction of dams, the connection of water basins and the desalination of seawater.