Water stands today as one of the most critical dangers one of the critical breakdowns of peace between nations. It has replaced the threat of war over oil. This breakdown is particularly acute where populations rely exclusively on groundwater. For example, in the United States most of the population gets is potable water from groundwater. Nevertheless, the worldwide urbanization, urban sprawl, climate change and recurring droughts have caused extreme stress on groundwater sources. There are three sources for the impending water crisis: rapid urbanization, especially in the developing world; a loss of over 50% of potable water, due to waste or loss in the developing world, and a large loss in the developed world as a consequence of aging infrastructure; and because of pollution, specifically, in the developing world, which accounts for over 2 million tons of human excrement and an ever-increasing volume of untreated discharges entering urban water supplies. Moreover, in the developing water, more than 1 billion people do not have access to clean drinking water. This problem is exacerbated by the over pumping of aquifers, which has caused substantial subsidence in cities such as Mexico City, Bangkok and in costal cities in Florida and California. Similarly, saltwater intrusion into coastal aquifers limits the available amount of potable water. Aquifers are under continuous assault by agriculture, the filling-in of and wetlands for agriculture, urbanization by favelas and the planting of cotton, whose ecological niche is on the banks of the Nile and Mississippi, in deserts in California and other regions of the world. This article uses case studies based on tribulations experienced in Israel and Western Australia. It also examines the impact on groundwater by withdrawals by the bottled water industry and construction runoff. The article then examines smart growth solutions in Charlotte, N.C., Lacey County, Washington and other American locales. Other proposed solutions addressed herein, include recycling water, rebuilding urban infrastructure, importing water, limiting groundwater withdrawals, planting trees, to preserve, protect and conserve the world's groundwater
