Adapting to water scarcity: a global challenge for the 21st century

In this paper Peter Cullen outlines how climate change is affecting the Australian water situation. He describes the policy framework that the Wentworth Group has agreed is the best way to confront water scarcity, and outlines how both the urban and rural sectors may have to cope with the situation. He finishes by outlining the challenges for freshwater ecologists as Australia grapples with the issue of protecting aquatic ecosystems from the increasing pressures they are experiencing., paper presented at the New Zealand Freshwater Sciences Society & Australian Society of Limnology Conference December 2007.