Editor's Note: Articles in this column were reviewed by the column editors but were not evaluated through the journal's peer review system

摘要

Water-life-crisis-conflict: Today, these words evoke the images of apocalyptic devastation caused by the January 12, 2010 earthquake in Haiti. The earthquake elicited global attention and emergency relief operations that first and foremost focused on water and food. Such a stunning event reminds us that support for and investment in the infrastructure to ensure clean drinking water and sanitation cannot be short lived. Both developing and developed countries face immediate and overlooked cumulative needs that require long-term measures to sustain and protect groundwater resources and the planet's health and well-being.