Defining and managing sustainable yield

Ground water resource management programs are paying increasing attention to the integration of ground water and surface water in the planning process. Many plans, however, show a sophistication in approach and presentation that masks a fundamental weakness in the overall analysis. The plans usually discuss issues of demand and yield, yet never directly address a fundamental issue behind the plan--how to define sustainable yield of an aquifer system. This paper points out a number of considerations that must be addressed in defining sustainable yield in order to make the definition more useful in practical water resource planning studies. These include consideration for the spatial and temporal aspects of the problem, the development of a conceptual water balance, the influence of boundaries and changes in technology on the definition, the need to examine water demand as well as available supply, the need for stakeholder involvement, and the issue of uncertainty in our understanding of the components of the hydrologic system.