Water is the oil of the 21st century declares Andrew Liveries, the

Water is the oil of the 21st century declares Andrew Liveries, the chief executive of Dow, a chemical company. Like oil, water is a critical lubricant of the global economy and as with oil, supplies of water at least, the clean, easily accessible sort are coming under enormous strain because of the growing population and a water-intensive life style. Goldman Sachs, an investment bank, estimates that global water consumption is doubling every 20 years, which it calls an unsustainable rate of growth.

All of the following show that water may pose an even greater problem than oil EXCEPT:

A. Water, unlike oil, has no substitute.

B. Climate change is altering the patterns of fresh water availability in complex ways that can lead to more frequent and severe droughts.

C. Untrammelled industrialization, particularly in poor countries is contaminating rivers and aquifers.

D. For businesses, water is not discretionary, without it industry and the global economy falter.

E. America's generous subsides for bio fuels have increased the harvest of water-intensive crops that are now used for energy as well as food.