Growing cities, overuse of fertilizers and factory wastewater have degraded China's water supplies to the extent that half the nation's rivers and lakes are severely polluted. China aims to spend $850 billion to improve filthy water supplies over the next decade, but even such huge outlays may do little to reverse damage caused by decades of pollution and overuse in Beijing's push for rapid economic growth. Photo: Fishermen row a boat in the algae-filled Chaohu Lake in Hefei, Anhui province, June 19, 2009. (Photo by Jianan Yu/Reuters)

Two traditional folk dancers performing in Teheran, Iran. (Photo by Keystone Features/Getty Images). 25th January 1961

French firemen wearing chemical protective suits take part in a mock chemical attack exercise at the Geoffroy Guichard stadium in Saint-Etienne, France, April 4, 2016 in preparation of security measures for the UEFA 2016 European Championship. (Photo by Robert Pratta/Reuters)

Actress Boquita Almonte smashes an old cell phone on “Good Riddance Day” in Times Square in New York December 28, 2014. Good Riddance Day, inspired by Latin American tradition, encourages people to shred and smash their bad memories from 2014 to start the new year fresh. (Photo by Carlo Allegri/Reuters)

A dog groomer prepares a model dog during the 2nd Annual Shenzhen International Pet Exhibition, July 14, 2016, in Shenzhen, China. The pet exhibition runs from July 14 - 17, 2016 at the Shenzhen Convention & Exhibition Center. (Photo by VCG/Getty Images)

A man carries a woman across a river at Petit Goave where a bridge collapsed during the rains of the Hurricane Matthew, southwest of Port-au-Prince, October 5, 2016. (Photo by Hector Retamal/AFP Photo)

“Environmental Migrants: The Last Illusion” by photographer Alessandro Grassani, documents the life of people in Kenya, Mongolia and Bangladesh who migrate to escape environmental stresses to the city of their own countries in hopes for a better life. Here: Asia, Mongolia, March 27, 2011. A view of Ulaan Baator over the shoulder of a slumbering drunk. Alcoholism is a huge problem in the city, home to almost half of Mongolia's people. The capital's population has doubled in the past two years. High levels of unemployment and poverty await herders who abandon rural areas and arrive in the city, illiterate and untrained in any skills necessary for urban jobs. (Photo by Alessandro Grassani)