Water shortages must be placed on the climate-change agenda. This is why

Most people do not realize it, but freshwater availability is dramatically changing around the world. Wet areas of the planet, such as the tropics, are getting wetter, while the already dry areas of the world, the mid-latitudes, are getting drier.

Some of the most rapid changes are occurring in the northern high latitudes. In the northern reaches of Canada and Russia, for example, warming at up to four times the global average rate is melting glaciers, permafrost and snowpack. Consequently, regional hydrology is being drastically altered, while critical local water sources are being eliminated.