The Earth is truly a blue planet; 70% of its surface is covered with water.
Unfortunately 97.5% of that is salt water, unusable for humans. Fresh water accounts for the other 2.5%, however, about two thirds of that is locked up in glaciers and in the icy poles.
That leaves humans and every other living creature on land only about 1% of all the water on Earth to use.
The cubic miles of water on Earth:
— Oceans, Seas, and Bays – 321 million
— Glaciers, permanent snow – 5.8 million
— Groundwater – 5.6 million
— Lakes – 42,320
— Atmosphere – 3,095
— Swamps – 2,752
— Rivers – 509
— Biological Water – 269
When looking at these numbers, what really pops out is the enormous stores of groundwater available. 5.6 million cubic miles is a staggering sum, even when compared to the immensity of the oceans.