Water is our most vital resource. The growing demands made by an increasing number of people adopting urban lifestyles, coupled with a changing climate, are putting pressure on the planet's freshwater supply. By 2025, four billion people may be living in conditions of water stress. Even where water is plentiful, the poor are unlikely to have ready access. Completely updated, the third edition of this groundbreaking atlas maps the competing claims on water and investigates uses and abuses, as well as the question of how it can be managed.

Water is our most vital resource. The growing demands made by an increasing number of people adopting urban lifestyles, coupled with a changing climate, are putting pressure on the planet's freshwater supply. By 2025, four billion people may be living in conditions of water stress. Even where water is plentiful, the poor are unlikely to have ready access. Completely updated, the third edition of this groundbreaking atlas maps the competing claims on water and investigates uses and abuses, as well as the question of how it can be managed.