Quick Facts About Water

Did you know....

  • Water covers 70% of Earth's surface. (That's why astronauts in space dubbed it "The Blue Planet".)
  • Only 1% of this resource is drinkable. About 97% is ocean water: salty, unpotable and not usable for irrigation. The other 3% is fresh water, but nearly one-third of that is locked up in the form of glaciers and ice fields.
  • The world's population more than tripled in the last century, but during the same time, our consumption of water increased six times. The U.S.A. and Canada, in that order, use the most water per capita.
  • Agriculture is the largest user of water world-wide, consuming about 68%.  Industry uses 22%.
  • Water is life: we might survive a month without food, but less than a week without water.
  • Water is weather: rain, snow, ice - and drought.  It determines what we eat, what we grow, and what plants, animals and water life thrive.