The causes for the water crisis are multifaceted and differ from one region to the next: in the last few years, the world’s water consumption has risen six-fold. While most of the countries in the north have an adequate supply of this resource, it is mainly countries in the south who suffer from scarcity of water. Wealthy people who live in countries with scarce amounts of water resources have such an over-abundance of water they literally „swim“ in it, while poor segments of society can hardly fill their needs.

The largest savings can be achieved in the agricultural sector, both in absolute and percentage terms. The liberalization of the agricultural markets promotes the cultivation of export products. Potential export products that need to be watered intensively are frequently preferred over products for local markets which can be cultivated in rain fields. While urbanization is on the rise, which increases water scarcity, pollution caused by home and industrial sewage contributes to the water scarcity. Only approximately 5% of sewage world-wide is treated. The rest is dumped back into nature without having been cleaned or treated. Deforestation, desertification, soil erosion and the desiccation of large rivers such as the Yellow River in China or lakes such as the Aral Lake, aggravate the foundation for fauna and flora on a long-term basis and destroy important water catchment areas.

The solution to the global water crisis has moved far to the top on the international agenda. The U.N. declared 2003 to be the Year of Water. The Millennium Goals define, among others, that by the end of 2015 the percentage of those people who do not have access to clean drinking water is to be cut in half.