We are experiencing a worldwide water shortage crisis.

1 Billion people are without clean drinking water. 508 Million people in 31 countries suffer from water scarcity. 25 Million people die every year from bad and unclean water. 7 Million Americans are sick from contaminated tap water.

Causes of Water Shortage Crisis

Global warming
While the ultimate fear on global warming is the melting of the polar ice caps and the rising sea level that will flood coastal cities and states, a more immediate impact of global warming is already taking place. As the temperature of the ocean and the air rises, the evaporation rate of sea water increases, and that ultimately affect the movement the air and clouds in the lower atmosphere and changes weather patterns around the world. Some regions are experiencing a lot more rain than usual in recent years that resulted in devastating floods. At the same time, other regions in the world are receiving a lot less rain than usual, and that resulted in droughts and a serious water shortage crisis.

Extended droughts
A combination of global warming and solar activities that impact weather patterns on earth, some regions are experiencing extended droughts and a severe water shortage crisis.

Rapid human population growth

The world population back in 1950 was about 2.5 billion. In 2011, there are almost 7 billion people on Earth. That is a population growth rate of almost 200% in just 60 years. At the same time, the amount of fresh water supply stayed about the same. As the population grows, so has the demand for food. The problem is

amplified by the fact that about 70% of the fresh water being consumed by humans are used for irrigation in farming. Without a comparable increase in the supply of fresh water needed for growing food, the cost of food can go up significantly.

Pollution of lakes, rivers, and other fresh water sources

Lakes, rivers, and underground water are the major sources of fresh water for human consumption. However, as comtaminants from factories and pesticides from farms leak into nearby lakes, rivers, and underground water sources, the availablity of safe and clean drinking water sources gradually disappear, amplifying the water shortage problem in regions where these factories and farms are located.

Desalination
According to the Wall Street Journal, 13,080 desalination plants around the world produce 12 billion gallons of water a day. Salt water from the ocean is converted into fresh water by removing the salt from the water using a process called reverse osmosis. This process is energy intensive and expensive. However, in countries such as Saudi Arabia where fresh water is scarce and salty sea water is plentiful, this is a viable option. Desalinizing 1000 gallons of water cost $3. Same amount of bottle water cost $7,945.

Fresh Water Is A Wonderful Resource

Fresh water is valuable. We use it everyday for drinking, cooking, and cleaning. The cell phones, computers, and televisions we use require intense use of fresh water during their manufacturing process. The bread, vegetables, and meat that we eat require even more fresh water to produce. Fresh water is scarce. While 71% of Earth's surface is covered by water, 99% of that water can't be used for drinking or farming directly. Only 1% of earth's water is fresh water that we can drink and use for growing food. 97% of Earth's water is salt water in the oceans. 2% of Earth's water is lock up in polar ice caps and glaciers.