Climate change - it's something most New Zealanders put to the back of their minds.

Somewhere, at some point in the future, sea levels will rise, our seasons will change, water will be in shorter supply than it is now and food may become limited.

As with most clouds, there is a silver lining of sorts. At least for investors, there's money to be made from sectors that will benefit from shifts in the climate, namely water-related companies, alternative energy and carbon credits.

This week, we look at water.

Few Kiwis have any idea what a valuable commodity water is. We luxuriate under the shower, drink our fill out of the tap and buy our consumer goods without a worry in the world.

But start reading about the world's use of water and the soundbites of information you'll find are enough to keep you up at night. Janine Starks, investment director at fund management company Liontamer, supplied these examples.

To make:

* 1 litre of Coke you need three litres of water.

* 1kg paper = 300 litres of water.

* 1 glass of brandy = 4000 litres of water.

* 1 semiconductor wafer = 11,000 litres of water.

* 1 car = 148,000 litres of water.

It's not surprising, therefore, that rivers are running dry across the world and aquifers (underground reservoirs) are being drained and polluted.

Robert Oddy, director of International Financial Planners, says it's not surprising that the companies that supply water, reticulate it, desalinate it and provide the infrastructure to do so might have a rosy future.

When it comes to getting a slice of investment action, there are local utility companies that Kiwis could invest in.

But they are, says Oddy, "pitiful" compared with some of the huge global players such as Suez and Veolia of France, and Britain's United Utilities.

These worldwide players are landing lucrative contracts in some of the countries worst hit by water shortages, such as China and Australia.