The State of Water Use

The previous chapter set out the reasons why the demand for water is an important topic for study. This chapter begins the process of explaining how to study water demands. The purpose of this chapter, then, is to provide the reader with several types of background information. First, the notion of water ‘use’ is examined. It turns out that human society has many uses of water-some of which require removing water (temporally) from its place in the natural environment and some of which do not. In addition to the variegated nature of water use, there are also different ways to measure water use. These issues are taken up below. Second, data are presented that illustrate the levels and trends in global water use.