Water covers 71% of the surface of the Earth.  The substance is what makes the Earth unique; without it and its unique properties, life could not survive on the planet.  Water also serves to maintain the climate and make pollutants less dangerous to living creatures.

Approximately 97% of the earth's water resources are salt water, the remaining 3% being fresh water.

The Coast.  Photo Credit: ClickART Image Pak.

Living things need water to survive.  The weight of a human being is about 70% water, and plants and animals are composed of anywhere from 50% to 97% water.

Unfortunately for some people in the world, fresh water supplies are distributed in a highly unequal manner.  While fresh water is abundant in some locations, other areas are extremely dry and in constant need of water supplies.

What intensifies the problem of access to water resources is that only about .003% of the water in the world comes in surface water and groundwater.  Groundwater is stored in aquifers, which can be accessed by people.

Currently, water consumption rates are rapidly increasing.  In some processes, such as irrigation, water is consumed, which means it cannot be reclaimed locally as surface water.

Water shortage problems can be partially solved through the creation of reservoirs to store water, transferring water to areas that need it, and gaining access to underground supplies of water.

However, many problems related to water still exist.  Some areas experience shortages of water, some are adversely affected by flooding, sometimes water is located in undesirable places, sometimes drinking water is unavailable, salinization of water occurs, and desertification occurs where there are insufficient amounts of water.