viii FOREWORD 



less waste. As anybody knows, bad habits are hard to break, 

 but the fact of the matter is that most Americans will have to 

 readjust their attitude toward this paramount resource from 

 now on. 



Our population has doubled within the last 50 years. Dur- 

 ing this half-century our per capita consumption of water has 

 also increased greatly. While some of this greater per capita 

 use is due to domestic or municipal demands, a larger part is 

 due to the tremendous drafts that are being placed on water 

 supplies by the growth of agriculture and industry. 



The time has come when we must abolish wasteful prac- 

 tices as well as introduce new water-saving methods, espe- 

 cially in critical areas. The over-all water supply is adequate 

 for our nation, under all foreseeable future conditions, pro- 

 viding we inform ourselves fully regarding the facts and 

 adopt programs through which the situation can be success- 

 fully dealt with. 



Ground water is a natural resource upon which a large part 

 of our population depends. It supplies many municipalities 

 and is widely used in agriculture and industry. Recently, re- 

 quirements for water, because of the growth of population 

 and the spread of modern facilities, have strained existing 

 facilities for tapping natural Avater sources. This strain is espe- 

 cially evident in the case of ground water. In many localities 

 rates of withdrawal have exceeded those of natural replenish- 

 ment. In some cases the result has been that salt waters have 

 invaded fresh-water strata; in others, pumping costs have be- 

 come very heavy. 



These difficulties, widely publicized, have led some to con- 

 clude that our country is "drying up." Ground-water scien- 

 tists assure us, however, that there is still a lot to spare, except 

 in parts of the West where there has always been a natural 

 deficiency of water. The problem is not necessarily one of 

 reducing ground-water use. It is rather one of preventing 

 overdevelopment of local areas by adjusting the use to the 

 supply, and by tapping sources not now used. 



