Eli5 why do we run out of water?

Question

I know we need to conserve water and such but why? Doesn’t it eventually flow back into the ground or evaporated and rained back down regardless of how it’s consumed, so it’s a cycle? Do we lose a bit per cycle?

In: 39

Answer 1

The element? You’re right. The amount of H2O is pretty steady. Only a few reactions like electrolysis actually destroy or create water molecules.

But when people talk about wasting/conserving water, they specifically mean clean drinking water.