Isotope Hydrology
The Council of Australian Governments recognises the better management of water resources as a national priority and is engaged in the development of a National Water Initiative.
Australia occupies about 5.4 percent of the global land mass but has only 1 per cent of the water resources. While Australians have the highest water use per capita, the average rainfall is predicted to fall in the long term.
The impact of low rainfall is exacerbated by the fact that most of the rainfall falls in the north, while the largest population centres are in the south. Further there is enormous variability in rainfall intensities and river flows over the continent which leads to problems in managing water as a sustainable resource.
Internationally, the availability of fresh water in many developing countries is a particularly acute issue as recognised by the UN Millennium Development goals