International Society of Sustainability Professionals 23 September Water Footprints. Phil Berry Vice President Sustainability Strategy

Transcription

1 International Society of Sustainability Professionals 23 September 2011 Water Footprints Phil Berry Vice President Sustainability Strategy

2 What We Are Here to Discuss What we will cover, and won t cover, today. We will talk about: Water Footprint in overview it is a complex technical process. How water footprints apply to business strategy, operations, products & services and supply chains. A bit about the considerations in, and process of, conducting a water footprint. Examples of water footprints in corporations and products. We won t talk about: Water Footprint can be a very practical concept for communities, NGOs and individuals but we aren t going cover that in the presentation today. Please do feel free to ask about those applications in the Q&A.

3 DJSI Definition of Sustainability Water is a risk to all companies but opportunity varies. A business approach to create long-term shareholder value by embracing opportunities and managing risks deriving from economic, environmental and social developments.

4 Sustainability isn t the same as environmental. In sustainability, all three need to be addressed. Environment o o o o o o o Environmental Footprint of Operations Product Life-Cycle Energy Carbon Water Waste Some cross-over from/to social Social Equity - (this not about charity) o o o o o o Economic o o o Business impacts on society Raw Material Impacts Product Impacts Employees and Workers in Outsourcing Community Stakeholders Markets Economic Contribution and Waste Some cross-over from/to social

5 Footprints can be created with no social element Its not wrong to do this. But it is wrong to call it sustainability. Social Environmental Economic

6 Water Footprint What it is. A measure of the fresh water used across the supply chain used to create a product. Or, a company / individual / communities use of water across the span of their activities. In either case, the footprint is a measures of direct and indirect uses of different water resources (blue and green) and the impacts of wastewater (grey). Sustainable Product Works

7 Water Footprint Why it is needed better water resource management. We all know the issues of issues of freshwater scarcity. Access to clean water impacts peoples lives like few, if any, other resource issues. Water is an increasingly global issue. Supply chains for water intensive products span the globe and are essentially creating water exports.

8 Water Footprint Why we do it understand impacts of a low water economy on our business. In the past 30 years, areas considered very dry have more than doubled. Even though some areas will see more rain and others will become drier, the negative impacts will be greater than the positive. Patterns of water availability are vital in understanding how accessibility of water will affect business. Need a view across the business to understand how regions of water scarcity affect business and risk. Sustainable Product Works

9 Water Footprint Why we do it to understand business risk. No water, no beer. Roberta Barbieri Global Environmental Director Sustainable Product Works

10 Water Footprint Why we do it to achieve business opportunity. If you do the work and the work is real. Why wouldn t you be proud of it and talk about it to your customers? Sustainable Product Works

11 Footprints in General Not a new idea. All of these are similar in overall intent within their area of application. And all are still evolving. Total Cost of Waste - from Deming s quality work in 1930s. Life Cycle Assessment s concept; process developed 1980s. Ecological Footprint - Wackernagel and Rees in Carbon Footprint - WRI and WBCSD in Water Footprint - Hoeskstra UNESCO in Sustainable Product Works

12 Footprints in General All share the concept of measuring impact across the life cycle or supply chain. Raw Matl. Production Raw Matl. Distr. Product / Service Product Distr. Retailing & Use Disposal / Disposition Simple straight line supply chain map.

13 Footprints in General Similarities between Water Footprint and Carbon Footprint. Both can be done on a product, process, operation, company or individual / community. Both can be accomplished in a variety of ways, at a variety of detail but both also have an accepted methodology. Both measure impacts across the supply chain or life cycle. Both distinguish between direct and indirect activities. Both use a mix of primary data and secondary data. Both can be used to create a baseline from which to improve. Both can be done in a manner that points to specific improvement options.

14 Footprints in General Differences between Water Footprint and Carbon Footprint. Indirect impacts are split into Scope 2 (utility) and Scope 3 (supply chain) for Carbon. Indirect all supply chain. Water Footprints measure consumption while Carbon Footprints measure emissions. Water Footprints measure three types of water consumption. Water Footprint is intended to drive a complex series of improvements in management of a natural resource.

15 Water Footprints Early footprints have been about agriculture and food for good reasons. Sustainable Product Works

16 Footprints in General Even in the food sector, a Water Footprint is complex. More realistic supply chain for poultry.

17 Water Accounting Tools What you are trying to achieve determines which tool to use. Water Disclosure Project (Part of Carbon Disclosure Project) Investor driven to create understanding of risk. Report covers water use rather than the consumption of a footprint. Life Cycle Assessment Total impacts from a mix of primary and secondary data. Widely accepted, and in some case required, measure of impact. Does not account for true water consumption. Database Snapshot of Water Use Secondary data for analysis of water use in a product or by region. Creates understanding which may be sufficient for corporate strategy. Not adequate for most complex uses such as conservation opportunities. Water Footprint Accounts for water consumption across the supply chain in three categories. Complex to do and still may not provide line-of-sight to opportunities. Sustainable Product Works

18 Water Accounting Tools No ISO standard but there is global consensus emerging. The Water Footprint Assessment Manual More what you'd call guidelines than actual rules. A lot of it is considerations for high level footprints of nations, populations and catchments (watersheds). Still, the manual should be a primary source of guidance. It s a 200 page document it rambles a bit. It has weaknesses: this is new and complex work. Its free on the internet but, oddly, it is copyrighted. 130 organizations (NGOs, companies, business associations, development organizations, and government agencies) have had input and review. Among them: UNEP, IFC, WRI, WBCSD, WWF, USAID, the beverage industry, etc.

19 Making Sense of Water Footprints Water Footprints are constructed from a water resource management perspective. Each of these are calculated across the supply chain: Blue Water: Consumption of surface water and groundwater. Green Water: Consumption of rain water that falls on the ground but does not run off. Grey Water: The amount of water required to assimilate the pollution discharged.

20 Water Footprints Water Footprints require a good deal of data and calculation. Blue Water: Industrial uses are almost always just blue water. Manual aggregates groundwater and surface water, I recommend accounting for them separately. Manual says calculating water consumption for energy sources only if they consume a lot of water, I recommend accounting for all energy sources. Distribution is usually not a significant point of consumption. No credit for returns.

21 Water Footprints Water Footprints require a good deal of data and calculation. Green Water: Almost always for agricultural and livestock rather than industrial. Runoff collected and used is blue. Grey Water: The concept sounds like it supports dilution but it doesn t. Well treated discharge has a much lower footprint. Allows wastewater impact to be added to water use. Varies by region / locale.

22 Starting a Water Footprint Consider risk and opportunity first to determine scope and data approach. Is it important to the brand? Does the customer care? Is it about continued access? Is production both water intensive and in an area of scarcity? Are toxics in wastewater a concern?

23 Starting a Water Footprint Initial considerations. Are you interested in what or what next? Many Water Footprints are being done just to calculate a number. We get calls from companies who have had a water footprint done and are asking now what do I do? If all you want is a number then maybe you haven t thought the concept through. Outcomes can also identify tangible opportunities to conserve and preserve. Even following the accepted methodology doesn t always provide this.

24 Conducting a Water Footprint The four phases (from the Water Assessment Manual) Setting goals and scope. Water footprint accounting. Water footprint sustainability assessment. Water footprint response formulation.

25 Conducting a Water Footprint Map the supply chain.

26 Conducting a Water Footprint Define Scope and Boundaries: what part of the life cycle or supply chain matters for water? Product Design Landfill Incineration Transport Raw Materials Marketing Disposal Raw Material Manufacturing Manufacturing Reuse Recycling Transport Charity Oil or Agriculture Transportation Consumer Use Retail Distribution: Warehouse or Wholesale

27 Conducting a Water Footprint Redefine the Process Map

28 Conducting a Water Footprint Gather the data from primary and secondary sources. Use the process map to define data needs. Define places where primary data that is available, such as manufacturing. Define places where secondary data exists, such as agriculture. (CROPWAT) Define the water shed and environmental and social issues present. Gather the data.

29 Conducting a Water Footprint What the data looks like for a cotton shirt.

30 Sustainability Assessment This is the toughest part this why so few do it. Environmental Context: is the product process sustainable in the context of each of the impacted watersheds? Social Context: how does the footprint impact society in each of the impacted watersheds? Process Context: can the water footprint impacts of the process be reduced and how? All three questions need to be analyzed for blue water, green water and grey water components of the footprint.

31 Formulating the Response to a Water Footprint Consider the BAU trajectory concept.

32 Formulating the Response to a Water Footprint Mitigation Wedges can work for Water Footprints as well.

33 Product Water Footprint Levi s Water Footprint of 501 Jeans

34 Product Water Footprint Levi s Water Footprint of 501 Jeans Result: a line of differentiated products and a specific set of product claims.

35 Product Water Footprint Lafarge Cement analysis of two different products. Comparison of the water footprint of two different cement products. Highest impact in the supply chain was found in high water using process equipment and quarrying of raw materials. The client is currently using findings to develop a water product labelling scheme to help the customer.

36 Product Water Footprint Aquafresh Water Footprint The client used the findings to focus on the consumer responsible for 99.7% of the water footprint and develop a differentiated piece of sustainability marketing to change the behavior of their Italian consumers. Current water saving total from consumers as part of this initiative is 44,024 litres

37 International Society of Sustainability Professionals 23 September 2011 Questions? Phil Berry Vice President Sustainability Strategy