The local administration office must strictly regulate groundwater management in order to curb excessive exploitation by hotels and industries, an expert says. Sudirman, Environmental Management Center of Bali and Nusa Tenggara region head, said excessive exploitation of groundwater could lead to devastating environmental impacts. He criticized the regulation, saying at present the administration had only issued a letter advising industries to limit their groundwater consumption. "This action is too weak. It has no legal grounds. The local authority needs to issue a bylaw on the exploitation of ground water," Sudirman said. The exploitation of groundwater is deemed massive, exceeding storage capacity. Due to limited clean water supplies delivered by the province's water company, many hotel and tourist-related establishments turn to artesian wells to meet their water supply...