From Discover Magazine, Dec 2009:
70% of global freshwater use is for irrigation.
22% is for industry.
About 20% of all cropland worldwide is irrigated. This land yields 40% of the world's food supply.
528 gallons of water is required to produce a day's worth of food for one person. (UN estimate)
One pound of rice take 240 gallons of water.
1,680 gallons of water go into creating one pound of grain-fed beef.
4.4 Billions pounds of human waste enter the global watercourse each day.
In developing countries, 70% of industrial waste is dumped into the water supply with no treatment.
2 million child deaths each year due to diarrhea (WHO stat). Of these 88& are due to lack of sanitation and insufficient clean water for drinking and hygiene.
0.01% of all water on the planet is freshwater that can be used by humans and ecosystems. Some 97% of available freshwater is underground. In many parts of the world, groundwater is being depleted faster than it is replenished.
Developing country water use will increase 50% by 2025. Water use has grown twice as fast as population over the past century.
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