The hidden uses of water - seeing beyond the kitchen tap
Everything we take for granted in life - food, buildings, vehicles, furniture, clothing - has an amount of embodied water associated with it. This is the amount of water used directly or indirectly during the production of that item.
What is embodied water?
When thinking about how much water you use you probably think about how much water you use from the taps or tanks around the house and garden, and perhaps even the amount you use at work. But have you ever thought about the amount of water used to produce some of those items you take for granted in your life - food, clothing, furniture, building materials, etc.?
There is often a high amount of 'embodied water' associated with many items we use or consume on an everyday basis. This is the amount of water used during the growing, processing and transportation of the goods we use or consume, or the services we use.
As an example, here are some statistics showing the amount of water used to produce some everyday items.
It takes...
There is often a high amount of 'embodied water' associated with many items we use or consume on an everyday basis. This is the amount of water used during the growing, processing and transportation of the goods we use or consume, or the services we use.
As an example, here are some statistics showing the amount of water used to produce some everyday items.
It takes...
- 140L of fresh water to produce 1 cup of coffee
- 1,000L of fresh water to produce 1L of milk
- 1,350L of fresh water to produce 1kg of wheat
- 3,000L of fresh water to produce 1kg of rice, and
- 16,000L of fresh water to produce 1kg of beef
(Source: www.waterfootprint.org)
A water footprint
You may have heard of an ecological footprint before - put simply it calculates the number of earths that would be needed to sustain our population if everyone in the world had the same lifestyle as us.
Now the UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education and the University of Twente, Netherlands, have developed a water footprint.
The water footprint of an individual, business or nation is defined as the total volume of freshwater that is used to produce the goods and services consumed by the individual, business or nation.
Now the UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education and the University of Twente, Netherlands, have developed a water footprint.
The water footprint of an individual, business or nation is defined as the total volume of freshwater that is used to produce the goods and services consumed by the individual, business or nation.
- What is your water footprint?This site helps you calculate your individual water footprint as well as the national footprint of countries around the world. It also has loads of background information behind the concept of the water footprint and virtual (or embodied) water.
Think about what you're wasting
A 2003 survey by the Australian Food and Grocery Council revealed that Australia wastes about 2.2 million tonnes of food a year and that this food contains sufficient embodied water to supply all households in Sydney and Melbourne with enough water for a year.
So think about what you're really wasting - try to plan your food purchases and consumption to reduce wastage.
So think about what you're really wasting - try to plan your food purchases and consumption to reduce wastage.