THE ROLE OF CONCEPTUAL ILLUSTRATIONS FOR RATIONALLY RESOLVING GROUNDWATER CONFLICTS

According to USGS, about 26% of water in the US came from groundwater sources in 2015. Fresh groundwater use increased by about 8% from 2010 to 2015. As states access groundwater to meet their developmental needs, interstate conflicts over equitable apportionment of water resources have become more common. Recently, Mississippi (MS) filed a lawsuit against Tennessee (TN) for $615 million for damages caused due to pumping by the City of Memphis. MS alleged that TN pumped water owned by MS, altering historical storage and flow patterns. The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) unanimously upheld the lower courts’ verdict that the aquifer is subject to equitable apportionment, making this a landmark judgment for resolving groundwater conflicts.

Several communication gaps and misconceptions about groundwater were apparent in this case. The concepts of groundwater storage, cones of depression, the direction of flow, wells, and pumping mechanisms were mentioned and argued multiple times. The special master’s report included studies to explain these ideas and their relevance to the case. The justices also attempted to find analogous examples to understand the oral arguments. However, it was apparent from the hearing transcript that the SCOTUS justices were struggling to grasp the complex principles of hydrology. In addition, MS based the case on the flawed perception that groundwater should be treated as property, unlike surface water. This hearing would have greatly benefitted from simple conceptual illustrations that could have explained groundwater principles to avoid any misconceptions.

Visual exhibits summarize the evidence and help to make accurate decisions. Cones of depression can be explained with 3-dimensional time series diagrams, which would clarify their continuous progression and overlap with MS’s borders. Similarly, the role of well screen in separating pumped water from the minerals present underground could have been easily explained with sketches. Such Illustrations can make litigating groundwater conflicts easier and rational. The objective of this study is to conduct a post-analysis of some misconceptions in the MS vs. TN case and develop illustrations to show how they could have impacted this major SCOTUS case. We use this case study to highlight the importance of visual models.