How much water is needed to produce everyday goods and beverages? People use lots of water for drinking, cooking and washing, but even more for producing things such as food, paper, cotton clothes, etc. A water footprint is an indicator of water use that looks at both direct and indirect water use of a consumer or producer. Professor Arjen Y. Hoekstra, creator of the water footprint concept and scientific director of the Water Footprint Network, notes, “the interest in the water footprint is rooted in the recognition that human impacts on freshwater systems can ultimately be linked to human consumption, and that issues like water shortages and pollution can be better understood and addressed by considering production and supply chains as a whole.â€
The Economist recently posted a graphic depicting the amount of water needed to produce one litre of beverage and one 1kg of goods:
Consumers may already be aware of the environmental impact of producing goods in terms of energy or pollution, but they might be surprised to learn how much water is needed to create some daily goods. A cup of coffee, for example, needs a great deal more water than that poured into the pot. According to a new book on the subject, 1,120 litres of water go into producing a single litre of the beverage, once growing the beans, packaging and so on are measured. Only 120 litres go into making the same amount of tea. As many as four litres of water are used to make a litre of the bottled stuff. Household items are even thirstier. Thousands of litres are needed to make shoes, hamburgers and microchips.
