A depleted aquifer can affect the entire water table around it, resulting in lower lake levels, or even completely dry streams. Wetlands can become dried out and empty. This can cause serious damage to ecosystems that rely on the water to live and thrive. Surface water is a major source of usable water for humans and animals. As the water table lowers, its harder and harder to access the water in these bodies of water.
An empty aquifer can also lose its structural integrity. A large piece of earth that is no longer saturated with water will slowly sink as the space is replaced with air instead of water.
