Waterscarcity is often imagined as distant dry riverbeds, cracked soil, or farawayregions struggling to survive. But in reality, water scarcity is alreadyshaping our lives in quieter, less visible ways. Long before taps run dry, theripple effects of limited water availability touch our food systems, publichealth, energy supply, and economic stability. It is not a future problem. Itis a present one.

Atits core, water scarcity is about imbalance. Water is a closed loop or in otherwords, a cycle. 97% of earth’s water is in the ocean, about 1% is drinkablewater. At varying times, that balance changes and several factors, includinghuman consumption, has an impact on the cycle.

‍

‍

Wateris a unique commodity. It’s expensive to move and store relative to itsunderlying value. You also experience evaporative losses in doing so, makingthe ongoing supply/demand balance even more sensitive.

Sealevels are rising due to melting polar ice caps, meaning freshwater is enteringthe oceans at a faster rate than the regenerative capabilities of Earth’sfreshwater cycle from precipitation and groundwater/surface water outflow,  with global mean sea levelhaving risen by about 8–9 inches (21–24 cm) since 1880 and currently increasingat nearly 4 mm per year.

Therole of Desalination

Thereis therefore no lack of available water on the planet for us to use, namely inthe ocean. It may even accelerate or rebalance the cycle by doing so, but ithas to be done responsibly. In some regions that   brinedischargehas been linked with declines in metrics of biodiversity (e.g., macrobenthiccommunity indices) near discharge outfalls in the Gulf.  So, in order to ensure that desalinationserves as a net positive to Earth’s water cycle,  meaning that land and ocean areworking harmoniously, it has to be done with oceanhealth as the first priority. In other words, without the strong brine,the chemicals and the marine life mortality. These are the pillars on which OceanWell was built.

A Water Dependent Economy

Whendemand for water exceeds available supply or when infrastructure and managementfail to deliver clean, reliable water, entire systems begin to strain.Agriculture is often the first to feel the pressure. Crops require consistentwater to grow, and when supplies are uncertain, food production declines. Thisdoesn’t just affect farmers; it shows up as higher grocery prices, reduced foodquality, and increased reliance on imports.

WaterUse Reshaping the Planet

In a striking example ofhow deeply human activity is reshaping the planet, scientists have found thatlarge-scale groundwater pumping has actually altered the Earth’s tilt. A 2023study published in Geophysical Research Letters found that between 1993and 2010, the overextraction of groundwater redistributed so much mass that itshifted Earth’s rotational pole by approximately 80 centimeters (about 2.6feet). Researchers estimate that humans pumped roughly 2,150 gigatons of groundwaterduring that period much of which eventually flowed into the oceans,contributing to sea-level rise.

Thisfinding underscores a powerful reality: water scarcity is not just a local orregional issue—it is a planetary one. Our collective overuse of groundwater issignificant enough to measurably influence the physical balance of the Earth’sseasonality.

ReducedEnergy Reliability

Ourenergy systems are closely tied to water as well. Hydropower depends on flowingrivers and full reservoirs, while many power plants require large volumes ofwater for cooling. As water becomes less predictable, energy reliability is diminished.In a world increasingly dependent on stable power, water scarcity quietlythreatens the backbone of modern life.

The Indirect Consequence to OurHealth

What’smore, we’re seeing that aridification also brings an increase in air pollution. Globally,more than 50% of the world’s large lakes and reservoirs have experiencedsignificant declines in water storage since the early 1990s, largely due toclimate change and human water use. A 2022 study found that nearly one-quarterof the global population lives in endorheic (closed-basin) regions, whereshrinking lakes can expose toxic lakebeds. For example, dust from the dryingSalton Sea in California has been linked to elevated particulate matter (PM10)levels, contributing to some of the highest childhood asthma hospitalizationrates in the state. Similarly, the shrinking Aral Sea has exposed more than60,000 square kilometers of former lakebed, creating toxic dust storms thatcarry salt and agricultural chemicals hundreds of miles.  These examples illustrate that aridificationdoes not just reduce water availability, it can directly intensify airpollution and public health risks.

Reliableaccess to clean water is essential for sanitation, hygiene, and diseaseprevention. When water systems are stressed, communities face higher risks ofcontamination and illness. These impacts disproportionately affect vulnerablepopulations, including low-income communities, children, and the elderlydeepening existing inequalities and placing additional strain on healthcaresystems.

The Illusion of Abundance

Oneof the most dangerous aspects of water scarcity is how easy it is to ignore. Inmany regions, water still flows from the tap, creating the perspective that,like air, we have an infinite amount of it. Aging infrastructure, populationgrowth, and shifting climate patterns, however, are steadily eroding thatreliability. Leaks, inefficiencies, and outdated systems waste vast amounts ofwater every day, even as demand continues to rise.

Waterscarcity isn’t an abstract future threat; its impacts are already measurableand affect billions of people worldwide. Globally, roughly half of the world’spopulation experiences severe water scarcity for at least part of the year, andabout 4 billion people and nearly two-thirds of humanity face severe waterscarcity during at least one month annually.

Beyondsheer availability, access is a massive issue: over 2 billion people live incountries where water supplies are inadequate, and many more lack safe,reliable drinking water close to their homes. What’s more, renewable freshwateravailable per person has declined by about 7 percent over the past decade asdemand rises and climate pressures intensify.

A $58 Trillion Problem

Puttingit all together, water scarcity directly threatens food production,livelihoods, and the global economy. AWWF report in partnership with financial experts highlights that water andfreshwater ecosystems are worth $58 trillion annually, equivalent to 60% ofglobal GDP.

Whenwater becomes uncertain, everything else follows. Addressing water scarcity isnot about fear or alarm, it is about foresight. It requires thoughtfulleadership, investment in resilient infrastructure, smarter management, and acollective commitment to valuing water as the finite and essential resource itis.

Thechoices we make today will determine whether future generations inheritresilient, sustainable systems or fragile ones struggling to keep up.

References

Water Scarcity Facts and Statistics, Britannica

https://www.britannica.com/story/water-scarcity-facts-and-statistics

Water Scarcity, UNICEF https://www.unicef.org/wash/water-scarcity

Statistics | UN World Water Development

Report, UNESCO  https://www.unesco.org/reports/wwdr/en/wwdr/en/2024/statistics

Renewable Water Availability Per Person

Plunges, FAO https://www.fao.org/newsroom/detail/renewable-water-availability-per-person-plunges-7-percent-in-a-decade-as-global-scarcity-deepens--fao-data-shows/

Seo, K.-W., Ryu, D., Eom, J., Jeon, T., Kim,J.-S., Youm, K., Chen, J., & Wilson, C. R. (2023). Drift of Earth’s poleconfirms groundwater depletion as a significant contributor to global sea levelrise 1993–2010. Geophysical Research Letters, 50(12), e2023GL103509. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023GL103509

Ibrahim, Hamed D. and Elfatih A. B. Eltahir.“Impact of Brine Discharge from Seawater Desalination Plants on Persian/ArabianGulf Salinity.” Journal of Environmental Engineering, vol. 145, no. 12, 2019, 04019084. EltahirResearch Group, MIT, https://eltahir.mit.edu/journal/impact-of-brine-discharge-from-seawater-desalination-plants-on-persian-arabian-gulf-salinity/

University of California, Riverside. SaltonSea dust triggers lung inflammation. UC Riverside News.  https://news.ucr.edu/articles/2022/12/08/salton-sea-dust-triggers-lung-inflammation?

Foodand Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. (2023). Global water usein agriculture statistics (AQUASTAT database). FAO. https://www.fao.org/aquastat

WorldBank. (2016). High and dry: Climate change, water, and the economy.World Bank. https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/water/publication/high-and-dry-climate-change-water-and-the-economy

Lindsey,R., Lumpkin, R., & Sweet, W. (2023). Climate Change: Global Sea Level.NOAA Climate.gov. Retrieved from https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-global-sea-level

‍