World Water Day is an annual celebration of water, whilst raising awareness for those who do not have access to clean, safe water. This year, the theme is “accelerating change”, and the role that businesses play in achieving change has been recognised.
Reliance
Water is an essential resource for all businesses, particularly in manufacturing and production. The reliance on a secure clean water supply has grown so much that disruption to that can have detrimental effects to some businesses. Therefore it is important to ensure there is infrastructure available to futureproof the security of supply and adapt to the increasing pressures on the resource itself.
Pressures causing crisis
71% of the Earth is covered by water, yet less than 3% of that is freshwater. Water scarcity is happening across the globe. Rising temperatures, population growth and increased production are all putting pressure on freshwater resources, with scientists estimating that there will not be enough to meet global needs by 20401. This rate of consumption is unsustainable and requires immediate change.
Pollution is another pressure on the resource. It is estimated that globally, 300-400 megatonnes of waste is discharged by industry into water bodies every year*. There is a requirement for businesses to consider the impact their wastewater has and implement solutions for depollution to uphold to quality of the waters we have left.
Sustainable development
Water consumption and waste have an integral link to sustainability. Many businesses have set their own ambitions and targets and are aligning their operations with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Meanwhile governing bodies outline regulations and policy to ensure every business is playing their part. Hand in hand, this initiavive will help toward accelerating change.
Resilience
How do you start to build resilience? Begin by understanding your usage, as well as how much waste is being produced. An audit can help to build a picture of where you’re losing value or where efficiency can be optimised. Once those areas have been identified, you can begin to adapt your processes, introduce best practices and even implement new technologies and solutions to make strengthen your water resource and secure a sustainable and more efficient supply.
Veolia can support you to carry out this audit as well as identify and implement tailored solutions, working together through each step of the process. Thinking more about your water can lead you to improving your processes, reducing your emissions and your polluntants, achieving your sustainability targets and even save you time and money, all whilst having a positive environmental impact on your local community. That is how we truly achieve Ecologcial Transformation.
1 Statista
2 Unesco
-Further Reading-
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