By Business Stream
Decarbonisation has become central to the way businesses think about climate change, with organisations increasingly focused on moving away from fossil fuels, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and working towards net zero.
While energy, transport and heating tend to feature prominently in net zero strategies, water use is often regarded as a fixed operational cost rather than something that can be actively monitored and managed. And yet, water use does contribute to an organisation’s carbon emissions and wider environmental footprint.
Water and energy are actually closely linked. Every stage of the water cycle, from abstraction and treatment through to pumping, heating and disposal, requires energy, which means inefficient water use can increase both energy consumption and associated greenhouse gas emissions.
The connection is not always obvious within an organisation’s reporting, particularly where energy and water are measured separately. A leaking fitting, unnecessary process or excessive use of heated water may appear primarily as a water issue, while the additional energy required to supply, move or heat that water can remain less visible.
As businesses look for further ways to reduce emissions, this presents an opportunity to consider water efficiency alongside more established areas of decarbonisation activity.
For many organisations, the first step is gaining a better understanding of current consumption. Water use can vary considerably between sites, processes and different periods of the day, and without reliable information it can be difficult to distinguish essential demand from avoidable waste.
Improved monitoring can help uncover leaks, inefficient equipment and unusual patterns of consumption, while also providing a clearer baseline against which future improvements can be measured. In some cases, relatively straightforward changes can reduce water and energy use at the same time, delivering savings without the need for large-scale infrastructure investment.
There is also a growing resilience argument for paying closer attention to water. Climate change, population growth and increasing demand are placing additional pressure on supplies, creating a greater need for businesses to understand how dependent their operations are on reliable access to water.
For organisations where water is integral to manufacturing, food production, cleaning, cooling or other processes, disruption can quickly have implications for productivity and business continuity. Knowing where water is most heavily used and where consumption could be reduced gives businesses more options when faced with supply pressures or restrictions.
Taking a more considered approach can therefore support both environmental and operational objectives. Lower consumption can reduce costs and associated energy use, while better information makes it easier to identify risk and plan for future changes in availability.
Water can also play a more meaningful role in environmental, social and governance reporting. Organisations are increasingly expected to demonstrate how they are managing natural resources and preparing for the effects of climate change, rather than focusing solely on headline carbon targets.
Including water within that picture can provide a fuller account of environmental performance, particularly where businesses can show measurable reductions in consumption, improvements in efficiency or evidence that resource risks are being actively managed.
The practical measures available will differ between organisations. For some, reviewing meter data and addressing straightforward leaks may provide the greatest return, while others may benefit from a more detailed assessment of fittings, processes and patterns of use across multiple sites.
Digital tools can make that task easier by giving businesses greater visibility of consumption, while a water audit can provide a more detailed understanding of where savings could be achieved and where operational risks may exist.
As businesses continue to refine their sustainability strategies, bringing water into the conversation can help uncover efficiencies that might otherwise be missed while supporting a broader approach to climate resilience.
