Groundwater forms a cornerstone of the Asian 'green agricultural revolution', provides about 70% of piped water supply in the European Union, and supports rural livelihoods across extensive areas of sub-Saharan Africa.

700 million international tourists per year and 500 billion dollars in annual receipts make tourism one of the biggest industries in the world, with a correspondingly serious environmental footprint.

Of the estimated 350-500 million clinical disease episodes occurring annually, around 60% are in sub-Saharan Africa, as are 80% of the deaths. Most of the more than 1 million Africans who die from malaria each year are children under age five.

To satisfy the growing demand for food between 2000 and 2030, production of food crops in developing countries is projected to increase by 67%. At the same time, a continuing rise in productivity should make it possible to restrain the increase in water use for agriculture to about 14%.

Poverty associated with water scarcity generates migratory fluxes of populations within countries or to other countries where people hope to have a better life, but where they may not be well received.

In 2002 there were about 12,500 desalination plants around the world in 120 countries. They produce some 14 million m³/day of freshwater, which is less than 1% of total world consumption.

Water scarcity causes enormous problems for populations and societies. The available water is not sufficient for the production of food and for alleviating hunger and poverty in some regions, where quite often the population growth is larger than the capability for sustainable use of the natural resources.

In many places of the world, a staggering 30 to 40% of water or more goes unaccounted for due to water leakages in pipes and canals and illegal tapping.

1,800 million people will be living in countries or regions with absolute water scarcity by 2025, and two-thirds of the world population could be under stress conditions.

Water scarcity has been defined as a situation where water availability in a country or in a region is below 1000 m³ per person per year. However, many regions in the world experience much more severe scarcity, living with less than 500 m³ per person per year

Expected trends over the next 50 years: There is still substantial uncertainty on the scale of future demands. Between 2000 and 2050 the world's population is projected to grow from 6 billion to 9 billion, and demand for food and other goods will increase significantly.

70% of the world's drylands (excluding hyper-arid deserts), or some 3,600 million hectares, are degraded.

Most water bottles are meant to be recyclable. However, only 20% of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), the substance used for water bottles, is actually recycled. In addition, the PET manufacturing process releases harmful chemical emissions that compromise air quality.

A major part of the poor people in the world live in arid areas and depends directly on adjacent natural resources, including water, for their livelihoods.

Producing food requires from 2,000 to 5,000 litres/person/day, depending on diet and climate differences and the efficiency of local food production systems.

With rapid population growth, water withdrawals have tripled over the last 50 years.

When asked why they are willing to pay so much for bottled water when they have access to tap water, consumers often list concerns about the safety of tap water as a major reason for preferring bottled water. While most companies market this product on the basis that it is safer than tap water, various studies indicate that bottled water regulations are in fact inadequate to ensure purity or safety. The World Health Organization (WHO) warns that bottled water can actually have a greater bacterial count than municipal water.

The primary substantive rule of international law is that States must utilize their international watercourses in an equitable and reasonable way.

40% of people in Africa, South America and Asia live in drylands.

Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) emphasizes managing water allocations within the ecological limits of availability, with a premium on three main aspects: equity, efficiency and environmental sustainability.

Each day, an estimated 1 person in 2 on the planet quenches his or her thirst with water that originates in mountains.

Mountain water plays a fundamental role in global food security, especially when used for irrigation and food production; in some regions, 95% of available freshwater is used for these purposes.