How to develop a sustainable water strategy

In 20 years' time, water availability will be 40 per cent below where it needs to be to support a growing global population. That is the stark warning from the 2030 Water Resources Group, a collection of industry experts, academics and NGOs which earlier this year produced a report detailing the scale of the looming water crisis.

The report, entitled Charting Our Water Future, states that global water requirements are set to grow from 4,500 billion metres cubed today to 6,900 billion metres cubed by 2030. Unfortunately, this demand is well beyond the capacity of existing reliable supplies, meaning that while huge investment in new water infrastructure will be essential, businesses and consumers will also have to start using water far more efficiently than they do at present.

The causes of the shortage are complex and numerous, but a growing world population with ambitions for a better standard of living is arguably the driving force behind the impending crisis. The majority, about 97 per cent, of the world's water is salt water, and of the remaining three per cent which is fresh, two per cent is tied up in glaciers and the poles (for now). That leaves just one per cent to meet the needs of an increasingly resource-hungry planet. Add the shifting rainfall patterns that are likely to result from climate change and there is a recipe for disaster over the next few decades.

Water shortages are already causing suffering in the developing world through widespread droughts, while concerns over availability of supply are also driving up water prices for businesses and consumers in the developed world. The threat of stricter legislation around water use could also affect businesses already struggling to manage carbon emissions and other environmental pressures.

One answer to this looming crisis is to apply some of the same thinking adopted to combat rising carbon emissions. Events such as the recent World Water Day, and World Water Week held every September, aim to attract similar attention to the water issue which carbon has enjoyed of late.

Indeed, there are obvious links between global warming and water shortages. Unpredictable and severe weather systems contribute to flooding, which in turn leads to contamination of water supplies. Meanwhile, the increased risk of drought conditions also means that groundwater supplies are likely to deteriorate further in the coming years.

As with carbon, the degree to which companies are acting to develop more sustainable approaches to water use varies by industry sector. For example, food and drinks companies such as Nestle and PepsiCo are already taking steps to improve their water use credentials, but many other industries have little understanding of how water shortages could affect their businesses, despite operating facilities or supply chains that are entirely reliant on plentiful and reliable water supplies.

So what should the average UK business do to address water-related risks and develop a sustainable water strategy?

The first step is to accept there is a problem. Given the now frequent reports of flooding that periodically dominate the headlines, it is easy to regard droughts and water shortages as an overseas issue, but according to the Environment Agency, water resources are already under pressure in many parts of England and Wales. Recent figures from the agency suggest about 25 million people in England live in areas where there is less water available per person than Spain or Morocco, and the situation is expected to worsen over the next few decades, particularly in the densely populated South East.

The global population rise affecting water resources at a macro level will also be felt in the UK, according to the agency. By 2020, demand for water in the UK could rise by five per cent or 800 million litres every day. Forecasts of a population increase of about 15 million by 2051 will strain resources even further, the agency warns.