•Adaptation, particularly through increased efficiency and flexibility of the distribution and use of water, which might be in very short supply in many parts of the world as a consequence of greenhouse warming. Important examples are implementation of more efficient irrigation practices and changes in agriculture to grow crops that require less irrigation. Emphasis on adaptation is favored by those who contend that not enough is known about the types and severity of global warming to justify massive expenditures on minimization and counteractive measures. In any case, adaptation will certainly have to be employed as a means of coping with global warming.