Despite the city of Adelaide being placed in the driest state on the driest inhabited continent, underneath its streets flow substantial quantities of water.

Now, a group of South Australia’s leading groundwater scientists is embarking on a $3 million project to find ways of using the valuable resource more effectively.

Scientists from Flinders University, the University of Adelaide, the University of South Australia and CSIRO will join forces for the Goyder Institute for Water Research project; a two-year effort to map the aquifers beneath Adelaide.

It is hoped the study will provide a comprehensive understanding of the quantity and quality of water within the aquifers, as well as he likely impacts of a changing climate and increasing population.

The popularity of backyard bores shows that Adelaide residents are keen to tap into the subterranean treasure-trove.

A recent study commissioned by the National Centre for Groundwater Research and Training showed that groundwater helps the nation earn $34 billion a year.

“We don’t know how much flows out to sea and how much water is fresh and how much is saline. Now is the time for us to learn more about our groundwater resources,” said Flinders University Strategic Professor of Hydrology, Okke Batelaan, the project leader.

“This will help us to use our groundwater sustainably and ensure the continuing viability of our groundwater-dependent industries.”

“We already artificially pump water underground to store it from winter to summer. Once we know more about the subsurface and how these systems work, we could potentially use them for storing large volumes of recycled stormwater, complementing other water sources, like the Murray.”