Environmental
The environmental impact of water use has become more widely recognised with many
of the leading UK companies now reviewing how best to reduce their consumption in
order to control costs, provide good environmental governance and protect their
brands.
The European Environment Agency’s WEI (Water Exploitation Index) places the river
basins in the south east UK as areas of severe water stress. This has a detrimental
impact across a range of factors including declining freshwater biodiversity.
The Carbon Perspective
Providing water and removing and treating waste takes energy. Based on 2010 data
the whole life carbon for potable water / m3 supplied = 0.34kgCO2 / m3 while the
whole life carbon for wastewater / m3 discharged = 0.76kgCO2 / m3. By calculating
the whole life carbon associated with supplying water and disposing of wastewater,
efficient water management provides a cost effective way to drive down emissions
and enhance CRC EES league table performance.
The UK Environment Agency predicts that population increases and climatic change
will make water stress in th UK more acute over the coming decade with increased
competition for this finite resource. Their 2009 Water Resource Strategy identifies
both higher costs and accurate water use measurement as the key demand management
control mechanisms. By publicising information about the water provenance and water
efficiency of any product, the Environment Agency also seek to encourage consumers
to make more informed purchasing choices that will direct businesses to adopt sustainable
water husbandry.
There is a growing awareness of the wider geographical context of good water stewardship.
In the UK we use an estimated 3400 liters of water per person per day to produce
the foods and goods we use, however, less than 40% off this is drawn from the UK’s
local water resources, making water use a truly global issue. Organisations actively
seeking to reduce their water footprint are adopting a more comprehensively approach
to water use that includes the water used throughout their supply chains.
With 2011-2012 prices rising by as much as 8% in parts of the UK, water is an increasingly
expensive commodity. Most businesses can reduce their water bills by around a third.
This, combined with the fact that an estimated 1 in 10 water bills contain errors,
gives a potential water cost -saving across UK businesses of an estimated £10 million
per day.