Fred Pearce When Rivers Run Dry. Boston: Beacon Press 2006

In an attempt to answer the question that forms the book's title, Pearce engaged in a personal journey to the world's rivers and investigated the use of water from them. Furthermore, he addressed "how we can restore the rivers' health and hydrological future" (p. x). From the Rio Grande in North America to the Indus in Pakistan he recorded the condition and health of rivers.

Heavy water consuming plants, dams along rivers, indiscriminate use of ground water pumps,
man-made rivers created from water from underground aquifers, the desiccation of wetlands and fens all exact a toll on the world's water supply and quality. The consequent evaporation of potable water, climatic changes, flooding, waste water management or mismanagement, toxic pollution, cloud seeding, desalination, rain harvesting, drip irrigation, and, at the extreme, water wars result.

The book offers a comprehensive, global account; however, it lacks footnotes or references to document its findings.

Pearce, F. (2006). When the rivers run dry: Water--the defining crisis of the twenty-first century. Boston, MA: Beacon Press.