In the wake of the recent earthquake, I observed a few springs in two mountain districts.

In Sipapokhare VDC of Sindhupalchok district (Photo 1), there were two springs on the slope (Figure 2). In between these two springs, a new crack developed after the earthquake from which a big flow of water emerged, around 30 liter per minutes (Spring #2). One can only guess that the new crack might have met the interconnected underground water flows which feed the new springs. Similarly, the flow of Spring #1 and 3 have also yielded more water after the quake.

According to a woman who experienced the earthquake just in front of the springs, the new spring flowed immediately after the first tremor. Similarly, there are news reports that new springs have been observed in many mountain slopes (Table 1). Besides springs, there are many stone spouts in Kathmandu valley whose flow also increased. In urban areas, buildings can affect the underground water flow channel and after the earthquake, the channels might get reoriented and some stone spouts might get more water while others may see a decrease in water flow or may completely go dry.

In Kavre district, where Nepal Water Conservation Fund (NWCF) and ICIMOD have collaborated on spring research project, local communities shared that many springs have yielded more discharge after the earthquake. At Darauni Pokhari village of Panchkhal municipality (the then Darauni Pokhari VDC) many springs have yielded more water in the northern slope. The discharge of the Thulo Dhara springs (Photo 2) which is widely used for drinking and bathing by the local community increased drastically after the earthquake. The Spring 1 discharge increased from 14 to 36 liter per minute, while the discharge of Spring 2 went up from 22 to 53 liter per minute¹. However, in the southern slope, two springs have completely dried up (Photo 3).

In general, there are reports of existing springs yielding more water and new springs emerging as compared to the springs that have dried up. However, it is uncertain if these springs will maintain the increased water flow permanently. It is likely that the increase might be temporary and may dwindle after a few months. Since the monsoon season begins in mid-June, these new developments could prevail until the rains stop. However, it will take some time to precisely understand whether the phenomenon is temporary or permanent. Since springs are the primary source of water in rural areas, it is important to understand how they function and what causes variation in their flows. Therefore, better understanding of geological aspect of spring hydrology is critical and further research needs to focus in these aspects.