Water Everywhere and Nowhere There is another shortage in the
globe’s vital fluids It is the result both of mal-distribution
and absolute scarcity Some 75% of the earth’s surface is water;
98% of this surface water is not potable. Of the remaining 2%,
90% is locked in ice at the poles or underground. In terms of
natural distribution, Europe contains 40% of the world’s running
surface while 88 developing countries with 40% of the human
population fall below the water scarcity barrier of 1,000 cubic
meters annually. Nowhere is the resultant condition as more a
threat to peace – the coming resource wars – than in the Middle
East, especially the swath called the Fertile Crescent whose arc
runs from Egypt through Lebanon into Iraq and Afghanistan All
countries in the region are heavily dependent on irrigation to
sustain the intense form of plant cultivation – both legal and
illegal. Three rivers carry the main burden of providing
reliable flows of water for the eight most heavily populated
countries: Egypt, Israel