Water by the Numbers
Estimated number of people in 2003 who lacked access to sanitation:2.4 billionEstimated number of people in 2003 who depended on groundwater:2 billionProjected cost per year of providing worldwide water access by 2015:$30 billionNumber of countries that experienced serious water shortages by the mid-1990s:about 80 (comprising about 40% of the world’s population)Amount of bottled water produced in 2001:1.31 million liters, up from 1.2 million liters in 2000Group that consumed the most bottl
The Scientist Staff
May 9, 2004
Estimated number of people in 2003 who lacked access to sanitation:
2.4 billion
Estimated number of people in 2003 who depended on groundwater:
2 billion
Projected cost per year of providing worldwide water access by 2015:
$30 billion
Number of countries that experienced serious water shortages by the mid-1990s:
about 80 (comprising about 40% of the world’s population)
Amount of bottled water produced in 2001:
1.31 million liters, up from 1.2 million liters in 2000
Group that consumed the most bottled water in 2001:
Western Europeans, at 97 liters per capita, up from 93 liters in 2000
Groups that consumed the least:
Africans and those in the Middle East, 9 liters per capita, for both 2000 and 2001
Source: International Council of Bottled Water Associations and
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