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Volcanoes creating fresh water reservoirs
Although on principle water and volcanoes would seem to be diametrically opposed, they have one curious relationship whereby volcanoes allow fresh water to accumulate in areas where this resource may be in short supply.
Many volcanic areas resemble deserts with no water for kilometres anywhere, but thanks to Naga R+D engineer Stephanie Barde, today Worldcanic demonstrated that not all the water available is water that is visible. Groundwater places a decisive role in many volcanic areas, providing fresh water for communities that certainly appreciate the hidden resources.
On the Ike Wai Project in the islands of Hawaii, Barde studies the volume and distribution of groundwater in the ocean and rifts in volcanic areas and other (hydro)geological barriers which influence the circulation of water underground. Resources of which the local populations of all these islands have always been aware, as borne out by popular knowledge of "areas where the natives collected fresh water in their canteens fashioned from pumpkins, dipping them into the ocean at points where fresh underground water was available".
This resource is very important to the local inhabitants of the volcanic islands, and maintenance of this knowledge is also important to science, because "it shows us how to use water sustainably in areas that have been devastated by volcanoes".
Hawaii is a community that has an intense relationship with its land and with nature, and this makes Hawaiians aware of their surroundings and resources, and also their value. Hawaiian legends also prove useful - "and in some cases they have led to many scientific research projects" - in terms of comprehension of underwater currents, because they sought to find a mythical explanation for the natural phenomena which science has now studied.
Despite all their destructive force, volcanoes can also help create barriers with aquifers that can be transformed into fresh water reservoirs, essential for the inhabitants of volcanic areas. The study of this underground water in rifts is a basic tool in these areas to boost the management of water resources.
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