Alaska

Arizona

Utah

Yukon

Northwest Territories

District of Columbia

Florida

Idaho

New Hampshire

Rhode Island

Vermont

Washington

Wyoming

Nunavut

Montana

Maine

North Dakota

Kentucky

Nova Scotia

Virginia

Delaware

Prince Edward Island

Saskatchewan

Mississippi

West Virginia

Nebraska

Texas

Missouri

Louisiana

North Carolina

Oregon

New Brunswick

Alabama

New Mexico

Kansas

Wisconsin

British Columbia

Newfoundland and Labrador

New Jersey

South Carolina

Michigan

Alberta

Connecticut

Pennsylvania

Colorado

Nevada

Massachusetts

Georgia

New York

Maryland

Québec

Manitoba

Oklahoma

Tennessee

Ontario

California

Arkansas

South Dakota

Ohio

Indiana

Minnesota

Iowa

Illinois

None

A map shows major drainage basins depicted as blue dashed lines. Some of the notable basins include Columbia, Colorado in North America; Amazon, Orinoco in South America; Niger in Africa; Danube in Europe; Indus in Asia; and Murray-Darling in Australia.

The world's drainage basins: land areas where surface water converges to a single point

Major Drainage Basins

World

USGS

Hawaii

A map highlights the major groundwater basins, Complex Hydrogeological Structures, and Local and Shallow Aquifers.

Global distribution of aquifers, which are underground layers of water-bearing permeable rock

Aquifers: Distribution and Recharge

In North America, major groundwater basins are located in the western Great Plains and the southeastern United States, including Florida, with smaller basins found in western Canada, the western United States, northern Mexico, and Central America. South America's major aquifers are in the Amazon basin, along the eastern side of the northern Andes, and in eastern and southern Brazil as well as north-central Argentina. In Europe, significant aquifers stretch from France eastward to Russia, north of the Alps but south of Scandinavia, and are not found near the Mediterranean coast.In North Africa, major groundwater basins run from west to east, south of the Atlas Mountains, along the Mediterranean coast from Tunisia to Egypt, and along Egypt’s lower Nile River Valley. In Sub-Saharan Africa, these basins extend from west to east through the Sahel. Central Africa's primary groundwater basins are in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, and Zambia, with smaller basins scattered throughout southern Africa and near the Indian Ocean coast from southern Tanzania to Somalia. In Southwest and Central Asia, the basins are smaller and scattered, spanning the Arabian Peninsula and Iran, and decreasing in size farther north into Central Asia.Siberia in Russia contains large groundwater basins, while the vast interior of Asia, including the deserts of western China, Mongolia, and the Tibetan plateau, has few small, scattered basins. South Asia features major basins in Pakistan and northern India, along the southern Himalayas, and in the river deltas of Bangladesh. In Southeast Asia, aquifers are scattered across the mainland and larger islands like Sumatra, Borneo, and New Guinea. East Asia's major basins are in northeastern China, with a few smaller ones on the Korean Peninsula and in Japan. In Oceania, Australia has a significant groundwater basin beneath much of its eastern region, with another on the northwestern side of the continent.

Display by:	Major Drainage Basins	Aquifers: Distribution and Recharge
	Major Drainage Basins	very high (>300)	high (100–300)	medium (20–100)	low (2–20)	very low (<2)	high (100–300)	medium (20–100)	low–very low (<20)	very high–high (>100)	medium–very low (<100)
Alaska	98.0%			10.9%						1.73%	69.2%
Arizona	95.5%			2.82%	3.38%	7.86%			26.1%		30.0%
Utah	47.8%			19.0%	13.5%	4.33%			52.4%		8.18%
Yukon	26.5%								2.68%	1.03%	94.3%
Northwest Territories	44.0%						0.393%	14.9%	20.5%		0.340%
District of Columbia	100%		100%
Florida	98.4%		67.8%				3.90%
Idaho	0.316%			0.187%	2.97%	8.14%	5.84%		27.5%	16.7%	38.6%
New Hampshire	0.302%									100%
Rhode Island	92.6%									95.4%
Vermont	4.27%									100%
Washington	27.9%	9.44%				21.7%	1.72%	5.32%	11.6%	26.7%	12.4%
Wyoming	21.0%				9.28%				70.8%		0.149%
Nunavut	96.5%								1.56%		18.2%
Montana	0.445%							1.96%	56.5%	4.73%	1.30%
Maine	23.3%									99.6%	0.281%
North Dakota	42.0%							25.0%	35.7%		38.6%
Kentucky	100%		4.79%				60.6%			34.6%
Nova Scotia	94.2%						25.1%			6.85%
Virginia	55.4%		25.5%				28.7%			45.7%
Delaware	97.0%		97.7%							1.87%
Prince Edward Island	61.9%						98.8%
Saskatchewan	46.3%						7.13%	4.36%	15.3%	6.27%	23.7%
Mississippi	49.8%		80.4%				0.601%			11.5%
West Virginia	15.3%						99.3%			0.714%
Nebraska	100%			45.3%	37.3%			4.89%			3.30%
Texas	18.4%		15.3%	1.57%	15.4%			1.38%	14.5%	1.86%	6.12%
Missouri	100%		5.80%				47.7%	11.5%		24.4%	9.83%
Louisiana	91.0%		99.6%
Hawaii							7.83%		2.03%
North Carolina	12.8%		38.6%				0.266%			54.6%
Oregon	2.50%	4.58%				2.26%	3.46%	4.92%	49.2%	17.6%	0.416%
New Brunswick	40.2%						0.131%			55.2%	0.167%
Alabama	13.6%		52.2%				32.1%			10.6%
New Mexico	54.2%				9.01%	8.20%		2.38%	17.5%		42.2%
Kansas	100%			13.6%	26.2%					18.1%	41.9%
Wisconsin	69.3%						42.1%	16.2%		35.1%
British Columbia	31.2%		0.939%				8.63%	3.82%		42.0%	15.4%
Newfoundland and Labrador	0.795%									63.0%	10.9%
New Jersey	97.8%		62.4%				37.3%
South Carolina	99.9%		62.7%							37.3%
Michigan	100%						26.5%			66.0%
Alberta	29.9%		11.4%	3.76%			18.2%	32.1%	8.32%	2.17%	3.59%
Connecticut	1.05%									99.9%
Pennsylvania	64.1%		1.35%				83.5%			10.2%
Colorado	7.14%			3.69%	14.3%	3.67%		9.04%	16.4%		46.7%
Nevada	10.9%				0.846%	77.8%			0.958%	0.158%	10.3%
Massachusetts	2.45%							0.204%		98.0%
Georgia	2.66%		50.4%				4.39%			36.4%
New York	45.5%		2.89%				5.91%			91.1%
Maryland	93.5%		64.7%				13.9%			20.7%
Québec	64.3%						0.272%			70.7%	19.6%
Manitoba	47.7%						1.61%	4.56%	6.78%	4.33%	51.3%
Oklahoma	100%				9.60%		2.65%	7.80%		23.7%	54.6%
Tennessee	99.9%		21.5%				71.6%			3.39%
Ontario	11.8%						13.7%	8.23%	4.40%	59.7%	1.73%
California	2.37%		1.53%	8.91%	2.60%	8.90%	3.94%	0.295%	0.750%	14.0%	3.26%
Arkansas	100%		49.6%				14.2%			36.2%
South Dakota	0.773%			4.24%	4.28%			9.35%	8.75%		73.3%
Ohio	71.3%						88.6%			3.31%
Indiana	89.5%						65.5%	0.222%		12.0%
Minnesota	35.3%						7.33%	24.3%		29.3%	39.1%
Iowa	100%						38.7%	26.5%		11.3%	6.08%
Illinois	98.7%		0.557%				94.5%	0.407%

MapMaster 3

Major Drainage Basins