Every Language has a Word for Water

Nearly three-quarters of Earth's surface may be covered with water, but only 3 percent of the Earth's water is fresh.

U.S. residents use more water than people in other countries do—about 151 gallons per day on average for domestic and municipal purposes. In the U.K., people live a more water-efficient lifestyle, consuming just 31 gallons per day. In Ethiopia, people have to make do with just 3 gallons per person per day.

It takes three liters of water to produce a one-liter bottle of water. An estimated 40 percent of bottled water sold in the U.S. is just filtered tap water. Bottled water costs as much as $10 per gallon compared to less than a penny per gallon for tap water.

To learn more about water—where it comes from, how it shapes the planet and the lives of people, plants, and animals everywhere—visit the special exhibition Water: H2O = Life at the American Museum of Natural History if you are in New York or visit their website www.amnh.org/exhibitions/water where all the facts come from.

Also, go to www.h2oconserve.org for brilliant water-saving tips. If we don't start today, then when?