Abstract
IN all densely populated areas the water supply is a matter of primary importance, especially where the rainfall is scanty, and where a large proportion of the supply is derived from shallow wells. Dr. W. F. Smeeth, of the Geological Department of Mysore, has prepared a report dealing with this subject, which is based upon observations made during the year 1909, so that it provides rather a basis for further study than a complete discussion of the subject. The Mysore plateau extends over some 29,400 square miles, and is composed almost entirely of gneisses, granites, and crystalline schists, which are more or less decomposed to a depth of from 50 to in some places as much as 100 feet; the upper 50 feet of this forms a reservoir which is fed by the rainfall, and will hold a quantity of water varying with the porosity of the materials, and from it the wells derive their supply. On account of the seasonal character of the rainfall the level of the water-table varies considerably, and from various considerations the author takes a zone of intermittent saturation having a mean depth of 10 feet, and an average porosity of 12 per cent., as representing the average conditions which occur.
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The Movement of Subsoil Water 1 . Nature 86, 499–500 (1911). https://doi.org/10.1038/086499b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/086499b0