We know all too well that we have a problem with the Murray River in Australia. The problem is: not enough water coming down the river and too many irrigators taking water out.

Look at this report on US ecosystems - just one small quote tells the story:

Among the findings, U.S. freshwater resources are being continually depleted and polluted. Between 1960 and 2000, freshwater withdrawn for consumption increased 46 percent. Meanwhile, drought and melting glaciers have reduced the flow of many water sources.

For the most part the public doesn't see this stuff. And they should because the message is, as Nelson Mandela so aptly put it at his birthday bash: "The future is in your hands"