Water Facts

·  97% of the earth’s water is ocean salt water. The remaining 3% is fresh water but two thirds of this fresh is          frozen in the polar ice caps leaving only 1% available for human consumption.

·  There is the same amount of water on earth as there was when the earth was formed billions of years ago.

·  The water that you are using today could contain molecules that the Neanderthals drank. At about 150 gallons per person daily, the United States uses more water than any other country in the world. Europeans use about 53 gallons per day and Africans only about 6 gallons per day.

·  Over a typical 100 year span, a water molecule spends 98 years in the ocean, 20 months locked in ice, about 2 weeks in lakes and rivers, and less than a week in our atmosphere.

·  It can take a whole lifetime for groundwater to travel just one mile.

·  Water regulates the earth's temperature.

·  Frozen water (ice) is 9% lighter than water (this is why ice floats on water).

·  A gallon of water weighs about 8.33 pounds.

·  Water is considered "saline" (salt water) and undrinkable after as little as one part salt is added to one thousand parts of fresh water. If the entire world's water were able to fit into a one gallon bucket, the fresh water available for us to use would equal only about one tablespoon.

·  One cubic mile of water equals over 1.1 Trillion gallons. The earth contains about 344,000,000 cubic miles of water and exists as follows:

·  315,000,000 cubic miles – salt water in the ocean • 9,000,000 cubic miles - groundwater in aquifers • 7,000,000 cubic miles - frozen in polar ice caps • 53,000 cubic miles of water is passing through lakes and streams • 4,000 cubic miles of water is atmospheric moisture • And 3,400 cubic miles of water are locked within living things. For example:

·  66% of the human body is water (about 10 gallons). 75% of our brain is water. 25% of the bone in our body is water. 83% of the blood in our body is water. 75% of a chicken is water. 80% of a pineapple is water. 95% of a tomato is water. 70% of an elephant is water.

·  Over 90% of the world's supply of fresh water is located in Antarctica.

·  Each day the sun evaporates a trillion tons of water.

·  At least 400 million people live in regions with severe water shortages and the number is growing exponentially. Most of the world's people must walk at least 3 hours to fetch their fresh water.

·  Freshwater animals are disappearing five times faster than land animals.