The WWF proposal: the water footprint on each product

Water and climate represent two related crises. THE problems related to water, on the one hand drought – with the relative increase in fires – on the other floods and floods, are destined to worsen all over the world with the climate crisis. There are millions of animal and plant species at risk, including the human species which already sees over two billion people in a situation of water insecurity or suffering. It is no coincidence that the second one opens in New York tomorrow World Water Conference45 years after the first (1977).

When we think of the action on water by the population, we often limit ourselves to elementary advice such as turning off the taps. For the WWF, much more can be done. For this reason the Association, on the occasion of the World Water Dayon March 22, provides data and tools to better understand the real quantity of water we consume, not only the one that comes out of the taps in the houses, but the one present in food and in the objects of our daily life, and therefore how to reduce the its consumption.

The hidden water

The water we drink is only a small part of what we consume every day. To direct consumption (for washing, cooking, cleaning or watering our plants) which in Italy is 236 liters per day per person against a European average of 165 litres, must be added indirect consumption, linked to the “hidden water”, i.e. that ‘water needed to produce the goods and services we use and the food we eat. If we buy a cotton t-shirt, eat a steak or drink a beer we are consuming water. Each production phase to make a finished product can consume water. The sum of all these consumptions represents the daily water footprint. In Italy we consume on average around 130 billion m³ per year – one of the highest water footprints in Europe, with an average of 6,300 liters per person per day. Consumption that is no longer sustainable and alarming considering that according to the World Resources Institute in 2040 Italy will be in serious water stress.

It would be important for products to indicate their water footprint (and the same for CO₂) in order to direct the consumer towards more sustainable choices by rewarding companies that are most committed to sustainable management of water resources.

90% of each of us’s water footprint is determined by the food we bring to the table. It has been estimated that each person “eats” an average of 5,000 liters of water a day: we eat much more water than we drink (from 1,500 to 10,000 liters a day, depending on where we live and what we eat).

Meat is the most “water-hungry” food. Its water footprint is mainly linked to the water needed to feed livestock and is influenced by various factors, ranging from the production system used to the composition and origin of the feed used.

Not just food

The clothes we wear, the textiles we have and use at home have a long supply chain behind them that starts from the fields where cotton is grown and from the platforms where oil is extracted for synthetic fibers. Every step of the textile production process involves a huge use of water, from dyeing to treating the fibers. This makes the textile industry the second most water-intensive industry in the world, with approximately 93 billion cubic meters of water per year, equal to 4% of all freshwater abstracted globally. Approximately 24,000 million m³ of water are needed every year to produce all the textiles purchased by European households. Water is a renewable but finite resource. We learn to use it sparingly, without waste and without polluting it. It takes very little to reduce your water footprint. It is important to prefer organic and certified fabrics, wash and prefer recycling to purchase. At the table, on the other hand, it is essential that each of us follow a healthy and balanced diet, based on mainly vegetable, seasonal, local and organic foods. By limiting the frequency of the most water-consuming ingredients, we could reduce Europe’s water footprint by 23% and all be part of a global change.

As regards productive uses, agriculture is the thirstiest economic sector in Italy, with 85% of the water footprint of production, including the use of water for the production of crops intended for human consumption and feed for livestock (75%), and for grazing and breeding (10%). It is therefore evident that the main attention in water management must be placed on the agricultural sector, promoting water saving in agriculture.

The drought progresses

According to the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the ongoing temperature increase will be accompanied by major changes in the water cycle across the planet, with wetlands becoming much wetter and arid areas being subject to to more intense droughts and for longer periods. In the last two years, even areas that did not know drought are facing new problems, think (for Europe) of France, Great Britain and Northern Italy. We also have to deal with a 19% reduction in water availability recorded in the last thirty years compared to the previous period (ISPRA 2022), which should lead us to review the distribution of water for various uses.

The Italians and the water shortage

The world gathered from 22 to 24 March in New York for the UN Conference on water (UN 2023 water Conference). For this occasion, a new research by was published a few days ago globescan which highlights the global perception of water scarcity. The main figure that emerged is that 58% of people globally believe that the shortage of fresh water is a “very serious” problem. As regards the results of the survey in Italy, it emerges that 56% of Italians declare that they are “strongly” affected on a personal level by water scarcity, while another 37% are “moderately” affected, in total as many as 93 %; 72% of Italians consider the shortage of fresh water “very serious” (overall, 96% consider it very or fairly serious); 97% of Italians consider the pollution of rivers, lakes and oceans to be a serious problem (69%) or very serious (28%). Finally, a significant figure is that among people affected by the effects of climate change, 62% say they have been affected by drought.

What to do

It’s imperative cut emissions climate-altering, in order to avoid the most worrying and unmanageable scenarios of the climate crisis, freeing ourselves from the use of fossil fuels, stopping deforestation and overbuilding, protecting the health of ecosystems. But it is equally indeferrable theadaptation, that is, to seek a new model of well-being that faces the changes already underway with foresight: for water, it also means cutting down on waste, reducing and rationalizing its use, ensuring the health of nature and restoring the territory, guaranteeing a equitable distribution of resources. People can take an active part in this paradigm shift, generating a clear benefit to the environment and forcing governments and companies to act immediately.

Earth Hour – Saturday 25th March

Earth Hour, the WWF’s Earth Hour, is back on Saturday 25 March: from 8.30 pm for one hour, millions of people all over the world will be called to mobilize, the lights of homes, squares and iconic monuments for the future will be turned off of the planet.

Here to learn more, participate, discover the events throughout Italy