New research that was recently published in the academic journal Science points out that the world's water usage is higher than what was previously thought.

As a starting point, the two authors of the study concentrated their research on the effects dams and reservoirs that were built for human use have on the water cycle.

What did they find out? According to a Washington Post article about the study, "They found a significant increase in water consumption...in the latter half of the twentieth century due to human water management." This is noteworthy because many dams and reservoirs are specifically built "to address an existing water stress in the first place".

Visit The Water Cycle and Your Local Water webpages on DrinkTap for more information on this topic.