Dry Rivers

One of the most important lessons of the EarthView program is how water can be scarce on a planet covered with water. We learn that only one percent of the world's water is fresh, liquid water that is potentially usable for secondary human uses such as crops, livestock, and industry or primary uses such as bathing, cooking, and of course drinking.

Unfortunately, much of that one percent is at risk. National Geographic has recently published photographs from eight important rivers that do not always reach the oceans or seas to which they are connected on the map. It may be that some of EarthView's rivers should be drawn with a dotted line.