The water footprint measures the total volume of fresh water needed to produce the goods and services that a person, company, or country consumes. The importance of this indicator lies in that it calculates the amount of fresh water that humans directly and indirectly appropriate for their own activities, which alters the cycle of water in the planet.
This indicator consists of four basic components: volume; place of origin; moment of water extraction; and colour/classification, which can be blue (surface water from rivers or lakes, for example), green (rainwater stored into the ground), or grey (water contaminated by a process).
The water footprint can be applied to products, regions, organizations, or individuals, and it refers to production or consumption. This does not refer exclusively to the amount of water used, for example, in producing food or in industrial processes. Rather, it also entails that water polluted or that becomes dirty in these activities.
This indicator consists of four basic components: volume; place of origin; moment of water extraction; and colour/classification, which can be blue (surface water from rivers or lakes, for example), green (rainwater stored into the ground), or grey (water contaminated by a process).
The water footprint can be applied to products, regions, organizations, or individuals, and it refers to production or consumption. This does not refer exclusively to the amount of water used, for example, in producing food or in industrial processes. Rather, it also entails that water polluted or that becomes dirty in these activities.
References:
El agua virtual y la huella hídrica
Portal del Agua de la UNESCO
Encuesta y grupos focales consultados para la elaboración de este reflexionario
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