Virtual Water Footprint

Ecological Footprint

Amount of productive land and water a given population

requires to produce all the resources they consume and

assimilate all the waste they generate

Ecological Footprint

Growing crops Grazing animals

Catching fish

Harvesting timber Assimilating waste

Accommodating infrastructure Capturing carbon dioxide

Components of Ecological Footprint

Global footprint: Demand and supply

What about land for other species?

• People consume resources from all over the planet, so their

footprint can be thought of as the sum of these areas

wherever they are

• Approximately 20% of the global population consumes 80%

of resources

Global distribution of ecological footprint

Water Footprint

The Water Footprint is direct and indirect

freshwater use of a consumer/producer or

product/service.

The Water Footprint

 Green water

 Blue water

 Black/grey water

Water footprint considers three types of waters

What are green, blue and black/grey waters?

• Green water – rainwater, which is temporarily stored and evaporates back

• Blue water – water flowing and stored in surface and groundwater sources

• Black/grey water – wastewater generated

Water footprint includes virtual water

Virtual water is ‘embodied water’ in a product or service. It refers to the water needed for the production of the product.

Global trade in goods and services brings along global trade in ‘virtual water’

Virtual water of crops and animals

Virtual water content of a crop

• Crop water use (m3/ha) / Crop yield (ton/ha)

Virtual water content of an animal

• Sum of the water content of their feed and the volume of drinking and servicing water consumed during their lifetime.

Virtual water: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ENOvYdm4hc

1 kg wheat 1 m3 water

1 kg rice 3 m3 water

1 kg milk 1 m3 water

1 kg cheese 5 m3 water

1 kg pork 5 m3 water

1 kg beef 15 m3 water

Livestock products typically require more water per kilogram (or per calorie) than crop products.

The Water Footprint of a nation is the total amount of water that is used to produce the goods and services consumed by the inhabitants of the nation

The water footprint of a nation

National Water Footprint =

National water use + Virtual water import – Virtual water export

3649 Mm3/yr

Total water footprint Million m3/yr

1423 Mm3/yr

1216 Mm3/yr

6623 Mm3/yr

584 Mm3/yr

581 Mm3/yr

1277 Mm3/yr

395 Mm3/yr

425 Mm3/yr

625 Mm3/yr

Total impact of EU25 on the global water resources

Water footprint of EU’s cotton consumption

84% of EU’s cotton-related water footprint lies outside of the EU [Hoekstra & Chapagain, 2008]

In Europe as a whole, 40% of the water footprint lies outside of its borders.

Source: Mekonnen, M.M. and Hoekstra, A.Y. (2011)

Assessing international virtual water flows

Virtual water trade flow (m3/yr) = Trade volume (ton/yr) X Virtual water content (m3/ton)

Trade Volume (billion m3/yr)

Proportion

-Crops and crop products -Livestock and livestock products -Industrial products

987 276 362

61% 17% 22%

Total 1625 100 1997-2001.

Yann Arthus-Bertrand / Earth from Above / UNESCO

• Case of Aral Sea-the fourth largest inland sea (1960)

• The Aral Sea (68,000 km2), located in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan

• Due to cotton irrigation – began drying up in the 1960s

Virtual water trade – Main cause for Aral Sea drying

Aral Sea in 1989 Aral Sea in 2014

Yann Arthus-Bertrand /UNESCO

• Fisheries and the communities that depended on them collapsed • Water polluted with fertilizer and pesticides • Dust from the exposed lakebed became a public health hazard.

Virtual water trade – Main cause for Aral Sea drying

WFP(m3/cap/yr) 600 – 800 800 – 1000 1000 – 1200 1200 – 1300 1300 – 1500 1500 – 1800 1800 – 2100 2100 – 2500 No Data

[Hoekstra & Chapagain, 2008]

National total water footprint

National Water Footprint = National water use + Virtual water import – Virtual water export

Carbon Footprint

Carbon Footprint A carbon footprint is the total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused directly and indirectly by an individual, organization, event or product. The Carbon Trust, 2012

GHG from average food consumption

Carbon footprint ranking

 Flight (LA to Spain): 4.6 tons CO2e  Road trip: SF to LA: 500 Kg CO2e  Light on for a year: 400 kg CO2e  $100 on groceries: 62 kg CO2e  Cell phone use (year): 47 kg CO2e  10 lbs of trash: 3.1 kg CO2e  Beef cheeseburger: 2.5 kg CO2e  A pint of beer: 500g CO2e search – 2g O2e

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Carbon footprint mainly expressed as CO2 equivalent

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The common Greenhouses Gases

Carbon dioxide Hydro Fluorocarbons

Sulfur hexafluoride PerfluorocarbonsNitrous Oxide Methane

Carbon footprint calculation for businesses and institutions

GHG estimation for communities, businesses, institutions

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ClearPath (GHG calculator for Cities/communities) – ICLEI

Campus Carbon Calculator SIMAP (https://unhsimap.org/)

EPA Simplified GHG calculator https://www.epa.gov/climateleadership/center-corporate-climate-leadership- simplified-ghg-emissions-calculator

GHG protocol for businesses, reported to CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project)

GHG emissions at USF, 2014

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Water and Carbon Foot print: USA vs Global

Water Foot print 2200 Gal/Person-day 1002 Gal/Person-day

Carbon Footprint 28 tons CO2e/Person-year 6 tons CO2e/Person-year

https://www.watercalculator.org/footprints/water-footprints-by-country/?cid=3999

Personal footprint analysis

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Use the three major footprint calculators:

Ecological footprint Global Footprint Network Carbon footprint http://www3.epa.gov/carbon-footprint-calculator/ Water footprint http://www.gracelinks.org/1408/water-footprint-calculator

Based on the results of your calculations answer the following: • What surprised you most in your own footprint? • What realistic actions can you take to reduce your footprint? • Compare your footprint against US and global averages