Why have some communities started to record the water level every month?

For more than a century, the windpump has been a familiar sight on the farms of the Karoo. Its tall steel frame and turning blades draw water from deep underground and fill the troughs where sheep and goats drink. Farmers value it because it needs no fuel and no electricity, and a well-maintained pump can work for decades with only occasional repairs. In recent years, however, some farmers have begun to worry. Long periods without rain mean that boreholes are refilled slowly, while more water is being taken out than before. A hydrologist who studies the region explains that groundwater is not an endless supply. "A windpump works for free," she says, "but the water it lifts was stored over thousands of years, so we must not treat it as free." Several farming communities have therefore started to record the water level in their boreholes every month, so that they can slow down their use before the supply runs low.

Answer and explanation

Correct answer: B. To slow down their use of water before the supply runs low

  1. Step 1: Monthly records let communities see the trend and reduce their use early.
Answer
To slow down their use of water before the supply runs low.
Why not the others: To prove to the government that there is no problem with the water: the aim is to manage use, not to prove anything to the government. To decide when they should buy new windpumps for the farm: buying new pumps is not mentioned. To measure how much rain falls on the farms each year: they measure the level in boreholes, not rainfall.

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