Water valuation: Building the business case

Water is life. Without water there would not be life on Earth. We all depend on water – people, business and ecosystems. At the same time, people and business also impact water. We use it without realizing its real value and often take the resource itself and the services it provides for granted.

Water availability is increasingly limited. Globally, water resources are constant, but if current trends continue, water demand is predicted to increase by 55% worldwide between 2000 and 2050, with some industries increasing much more, such as manufacturing by 400% and electricity production by 140% (OECD, 2012). Water resources will not allow for such growth without an increase in the productivity of water use. Business as usual is simply not an option and reversing this trend is imperative.

How? We need to stop wasting and mismanaging water. The unsustainable use of water can be partly attributed to the fact that we do not pay the full cost of using it. This may be due to subsidies or because we do not account for the societal costs linked to its use. This is where business can play a positive role. Companies impact and depend upon water. By looking at the value of the water they use in their operations, they can better inform management actions and limit wasteful practices.

This publication, Water Valuation: Building the business case, aims to demonstrate the business case for companies to engage in water valuation and is supported by a review of 21 business case studies that illustrate why and how different companies have carried out water valuation. It is a first response to Vision 2050, a WBCSD report that lays out a pathway leading to a world where 9 billion people live well, within the limits of the planet, by 2050 (WBCSD, 2010). Water Valuation: Building the business case paves the path towards the integration of true water values and true water costs into decision-making.

Peter Bakker, President of the WBCSD, deeply believes that progressive businesses need to look at their externalities so as to understand and manage their impacts and dependencies on natural resources, and the way these interact with societies and economies. He strongly encourages all companies to start tackling this issue, accounting for the real value of the water they are using, and to do it now, before it is too late.

Source: All information was taken from the Website & the Publication.

Contents

Foreword

The business case for undertaking water valuation – A summary

  • 1 Water valuation: A growing issue for business
  • 2 The relationships between business and water
  • 3 Increasing demand, dwindling supply and climate change
  • 4 The trend towards valuing water
  • 5 Key challenges and responses
  • 6 Applications for water valuation in business decision-making
  • 7 The business case for water valuation
  • 8 When should businesses undertake water valuation?
  • 9 What happens after valuation?

Acronyms

Definitions

References

Acknowledgements

Source: All information was taken from the Website & the Publication.

Written by James Spurgeon, Sustain Value, Independent consultant on ecosystem ans sustainability valuation.

A large number of WBCSD members and external experts were consulted for comments and guidance.

Water Project Leadership Group Members:

Pathway Leader


Veolia Water,
Mathieu Tolian,

Pathway members

GDF SUEZ, Elsa Favrot;
Holcim, Meg Garakani;
Petrobras, Carlos Gonzales, Bruna Stein;
PwC, Lauren Koopman, Jennifer Möller-Gulland, Matthias Retter, Gary Sharkey;
Rio Tinto, Kristina Ringwood;
Shell, Alfio Mianzan;
Siemens, Jochen Schweitzer;
Suncor, Brian Doucette, Kathleen Gardiner-Manning, Prit Kotecha;
Xylem, Leff Bennett.

Water Project Working Group members


BCSD Portugal, Mafalda Evangelista;
ERM, Jerome Rathle;
Hitachi, Ayako Kohno;
Statoil, David McKenna.

Experts stakeholders

Alberta Water SMART, Kim Sturgess;
Aquafed, Jack Moss;
Global Nature Fund, Tobias Hartmann;
IUCN, Nathalie Olsen;
Trucost, Alastair MacGregor;
UNEP, Nicolas Bertrand.

WBCSD Water Project Team members

Violaine Berger;
Anne-Léonore Boffi;
Joppe Cramwinckel;
Tatiana Fedotova.

Source: All information was taken from the Website & the Publication.

 
 
 
 

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