They say that the wars of the future will not be fought over oil, but over fresh water. We all understand that water is essential for life, but, as the Financial Times reports, “many are just beginning to grasp how essential it is to everything in life – food, energy, transportation, nature, leisure, identity, culture and virtually all products used on a daily basis,” says Lloyd Timberlake of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, a business think-tank, which next week launches a report on the subject.
Facing future water shortages and water as a business risk, companies are thriving by offering innovations in infrastructure replacement, filtration, irrigation and desalination. Inefficiences in water use are alarming, check out some of these facts presented in the article:
Food
It takes 200 litres of water to produce 1kg of rice
1kg of potatoes: 500 litres
1 orange: 53 litres
1 serving of lettuce: 22 litres
1 pint of milk: 250 litres
1 egg: 450 litres
1 loaf of bread: 550 litres
1 kg of butter: 18,000 litres
Textiles and consumer goods
1kg of cotton: 5,300 litres
1kg of wool: 200,000 litres
1 car: 150,000 litres
1 computer chip: 75 litres
Via: (The Financial Times) – Click here for the entire article.
