Oases to Oblivion: The Rapid Demise of Springs in the South‐Eastern Great Artesian Basin, Australia

Introduction Since the advent of powerful rock boring equipment in the late nineteenth century, ground water extraction for towns, mining, and agriculture has had significant impacts on aquifers across the globe. In areas where surface water is scarce, human demands on artesian supplies have been particularly acute, demonstrated by declines in the pressure surface of aquifers and subsequent loss of artesian springs. The springs and the wetlands they support have important natural values, providing habitat for specialized plants and animals, many of which are endemic to their idiosyncratic habitat (Ponder 1986; Patten et al. 2008). Springs are also significant cultural places, embodying traditional folk-lore, and mythology (Idris 1996; Park and Ha 2012) and supporting settlements along ancient trade routes (Aldumairy 2005). While the exploitation of groundwater and loss of springs, together with their natural resource and cultural values, has been repeated across the continents from Australia (Fairfax and Fensham 2002), the United States (Keleher and Rader 2008; Brune 1981), China (Jiao 2010) and North Africa (Roberts and Mitchell 1987; Idris 1996) there have been few comprehensive historical studies which piece together the details of their decline. In recent decades there have been attempts to resurrect the forgotten cultural history of the Australian Great Artesian Basin (GAB) springs. There are broad cultural and historical examinations of the GAB, its folklore and its significance to the historical geography of central Australia (Powell 2012; Powell 1991; Blake and