Water

Is access to clean drinking water a basic human right, or a commodity that should be bought and sold like any other article of commerce? Stephanie Soechtig's debut feature is an unflinching examination of the big business of bottled water.

A huge bottled-water industry has recently emerged, with the U.S. its largest consumer. But is bottled water actually healthier, safer, or tastier than tap water? A water expert explains that bottled water does not meet the same strict standards in the U.S. as water from the tap, though tap-water quality can vary among communities.

Despite its wonders, Earth's water cycle does not spread water evenly around the planet. The Ogallala Aquifer’s huge underground reservoir of water gives the relatively dry Central Plains states such as Nebraska a large but limited irrigation source. But the aquifer's water is being used up faster than it is beng replenished.

The campaign to have water declared a human right was dramatically advanced at the United Nations on July 28, 2010, when a large majority voted for a resolution to recognize the human right to water and sanitation. Canada, the US, and 39 other countries abstained.

More than three decades after the Clean Water Act, two iconic waterways—the great coastal estuaries of Puget Sound and the Chesapeake Bay—are in perilous condition. With polluted runoff still flowing in from industry, agriculture and massive suburban development, scientists fear contamination to the food chain and drinking water for millions of people.