CleanBeta

Map of Peak-Water Potential in U.S.

In 2000, roughly 6.1 billion people lived on the giant ball of dirt hurtling through space called Earth. The number has grown by about 77 million annually since. By 2025, the world’s population will approach 8.0 billion, according to the United Nations Population Division.

More than any other single factor, life as we know it depends on the availability of water. Water not only sustains life, it strongly influences economic activity (both production and consumption) and social status. The world’s supply of fresh water is distributed unevenly. Nearly 500 million people suffer water stress or serious water scarcity today and the number is rapidly rising. Under current trends, two-thirds of the world’s population may be subject to moderate to high water stress in 2025. By then, the world will need 17% more water to produce enough food to sustain the population boom in developing countries. Total water use will increase by roughly 40%. These maps depict patterns of water use in the United States.

The vast majority of fresh water is used by four economic sectors — industrial, agricultural, commercial, and residential. This map defines high-water demand as counties where more than 1.120 billion gallons of water is withdrawn daily from the three aquifers with the greatest rate of withdrawal.

The map featured above indicates 16 water quality problems currently facing the United States. Counties with multiple water-related issues are overlayed with several colors and thus appear darker on the map. In other words, almost every part of the country is facing a major water challenge in the near-term future.