Groundwater is used for water supply, irrigation, production of mineral water, aqua-culture, and for the production of energy.
In Norway about 15 % of water supply is based on groundwater. This is rather low compared with many other European countries, such as Denmark, Austria and Iceland, which use groundwater for more than 95 % in their water supply.
The reason for the limited use of groundwater is ready access to abundant fresh surface water in Norway. However, recently groundwater is increasingly being used in rural areas because of reasons related to water quality and hygiene, and because water supply based on groundwater is often more economical.