Two thirds of the water used in UK imports is from developing countries, where the need for water is greatest.

Water vital to developing countries is being used in imported goods to the UK – the ‘Global Water Security’ report has revealed two thirds of the UK’s water footprint is imported in items that require water for production and transportation.

Mainly, the water used to import goods is in ‘embedded water’ – the amount of water used to grow and produce items. For example, a cotton t-shirt uses 2,700 litres of water, and one kilogram of beef around 15,500 litres.

The use of water in imported goods to developed countries is being brought into question as a recent report by the World Bank’s Independent Evaluation Group found that the effects of water shortages are felt strongly by 700 million people in 43 countries.

In addition, 1.2 billion people worldwide do not have access to safe, clean drinking water – an issue that will become more prevalent in a few years time as the world’s population is expected to increase from 6.8bn to 8bn by 2025.

The report was compiled by the Engineering the Future alliance, made up of engineers from the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAE), and the Chartered Institute of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM).

Professor Peter Guthrie, Chair of the group, said: “If the water crisis becomes critical it will pose a serious threat to the UK’s future development because of the impact it would have on our access to vital resources. Food prices would sky-rocket and economic growth would suffer.

“To prevent this we must recognise how the UK’s water footprint is impacting on global water scarcity. We should ask whether it is right to import green beans – or even roses - from a water-stressed region like Kenya, for example. The burgeoning demand from developed countries is putting severe pressure on areas that are already short of water.”

Recommendations from the report include: improved water management systems; improving water efficiency in agriculture; using technology to find sustainable sources of water; and improved water security.

Click here ^[1] to read the report in full.