Comprising relevant material from a number of established sources, this book puts forward the statement 'groundwater is life' and embarks on an analysis of modern hydrogeology's impact on the development of human societies and poverty alleviation.

Groundwater plays a central role in the development of human societies. This book contains selected papers, plenary conferences, and workshop materials from the 2002 International Association of Hydrogeologists and Latin-American Association of Groundwater Hydrology for Development Congress on "Groundwater and Human Development," held in Mar del Plata, Argentina. This congress gathered over 400 international participants to exchange experiences and research. The main topics include groundwater and quality of life, groundwater in urban, suburban, and rural systems, transboundary aquifers, hydrogeology of large plains, coastal aquifers, methods for groundwater studies, and groundwater management.