The future estimates of water consumption provide a grim picture. In 2000 A.D. for which we have only five years to go, world agriculture shall require 30% more water, while power generation sector and industries could draw as much as 15-16 times more water than they did in 1970. Domestic requirement for water shall rise 9-10 times while water drawn for livestock management could grow 3-4 times the base figure of 1970.
The demand of water for navigation, fisheries, hydro-electric power generation, and recreational activities shall also double itself. A total of about 11,250 cubic kms of water shall be drawn for human use in 2000 A.D. Out of this enormous amount about 4,800 cubic kms shall be consumed irrecoverably.
So by 2000 A.D., while the total amount of water drawn will increase a little more than three times, the amount of water consumed irrecoverably shall be a little more than twice the amount completely used up in 1970. This shall happen because of water economy, re-use, recycling and an increased capacity to store the surface flow- practices which man will be forced to adopt.
A number of countries shall suffer from acute water shortage as we shall be requiring about 11,250 cubic kms of freshwater while about 9,000 cubic kms of water are actually available to us. Careful planning and economy is required for the management of our water resources.